


What Heath Wants

by coldfusion9797



Category: Home and Away
Genre: Love/Hate, M/M, Tombstone movie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-27
Updated: 2014-10-27
Packaged: 2018-02-22 19:09:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 28
Words: 35,303
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2518658
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coldfusion9797/pseuds/coldfusion9797
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Heath hates Liam. Liam hates Heath. So why the hell can't they stay away from each other? Set back in late 2011.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Heath pulled a stool up to the bar.

"Whiskey," he demanded from Murphy.  
"Like that is it?" Murphy said as he slid a glass across the bar. Heath chose to ignore that and threw down the shot. He plonked the glass down and demanded another. Murphy obliged and then moved along the bar to serve someone else.

Chicks. They had no idea what they wanted. His head spun trying to keep up with whether or not Brax was seeing that crazy cop from hour to hour, it changed so often. He'd thought Brax was a bloody fool for putting up with it and now Bianca was doing the same thing to him. Did she want him or didn't she? She sure acted like it but when he tried to take things further she kept backing off, stupid cow. He wished she'd either screw him or tell him to fuck off. At least he'd know where he stood.  
"Be careful," Murphy said smirking at him, annoying idiot. He was part of, well actually a lot of, the reason Bianca was acting the way she was.  
"What are you on about Murphy?" Heath asked, not trying to cover his obvious dislike of the man in any way.  
"Just that your head might explode if you keep thinking so hard."  
"Shut up tosser, it's got nothing to do with you. Get me another drink," Heath demanded, shoving the glass at Murphy who poured more whiskey into it.  
"You gonna pay for those?" Murphy asked.  
"No. It's Brax's place, I don't have to."  
"He might say differently."  
"Well that's for me and him to sort out." Heath said swiping the whiskey bottle from Murphy's hand, snatching up his glass and stalking off to a table in the corner.

xxx

Heath was the only one still drinking in the bar and it was closing time. Liam was gonna have to ask him to leave but was a little reluctant to do so. It hadn't escaped Liam's notice that Heath had just hit the bottom of that bottle of whiskey and was _very_ drunk. Thank God that bottle hadn't been full. Even if he did persuade Heath to leave Liam doubted that he'd be able to put one foot in front of the other, let alone walk home. Taking a deep breath Liam decided to try the nice approach first, he was tired after a long shift and not really in the mood for a fight. Helping himself to a seat opposite Heath, Liam asked, "ready to go home Heath?" It took Heath a moment to react, drunk as he was. Slowly he lifted his head and tried to fix his gaze on Liam. Ignoring Liam's question entirely Heath asked one of his own instead.

"You know what the problem with chicks is?" Was Liam supposed to answer that? Apparently not, as Heath had launched into an explanation. "They have no fucking idea what they want. They act all flirty and just when you think you're in, bam! They act like it never happened. Stupid bitches." Ok, so maybe Heath's words didn't come out quite that clear but Liam got the picture, Heath was pissed off. "Now take me for example," Heath continued, leaning back in his chair so far that Liam half stood up in case he'd have to stop Heath from falling and cracking his head open on the floor, "I know exactly what I want." Liam imagined that was true, and couldn't help the smirk that crept onto his face. "I just wanna get laid." Yep, just as Liam thought.


	2. Chapter 2

Liam meant to leave Heath at the front door and go but he was doubtful that Heath could make it inside on his own. So here he was, helping Heath onto his bed. It was kinda awkward, in more ways than one, but Heath was his boss's brother, this was the right thing to do. Liam attempted to ease the drunk down onto his bed but he ended up just letting Heath kinda fall onto the mattress.

"Thanks Murphy," Heath slurred once he'd managed to haul himself into a sitting position on the edge of the bed, "maybe you're not as big of an arsehole as I thought you were."

"Ok," was Liam's dismissive response as he turned to leave, glad to be rid of Heath.

"Hey!" Heath called after him, "I just said something nice to you!"

"Is that what you call it?" Liam said with mild amusement, turning back to face the other man.

"What's your problem Murphy?"

"Me?" Liam asked incredulously, "I just helped you home. You're the one who's too drunk to put one foot in front of the other. I don't think it's me you need to worry about…" Liam finished a little sheepishly, realising he was attempting to argue rationally with a very intoxicated Heath.

"I can so!" Heath stated, pushing himself up off the bed to demonstrate. But he over balanced and somehow ended up falling back onto the bed, pulling Liam with down with him.

xxx

How the hell did that happen? One minute he'd been showing Murphy how undrunk? Wait, is that a word? Whatever. He'd been showing Murphy how so _not_ drunk he was and the next minute they were tangled on the bed together. Murphy tried to scramble back but Heath felt unsteady and clutched at him for support. How strange that at the end of a night when he was pissed off about not getting laid, he'd ended up on a bed with Murphy of all people. And then it occurred to Heath that they were two adults in a bed and well, why not?

"You wanna stay for a bit?" Heath asked Murphy, grabbing the other man's shirt roughly and pulling him closer. Murphy's eyes widened in surprise, making Heath chuckle.

"Heath, you're drunk," Murphy stated, attempting to free himself from Heath's grip. Heath wasn't sure why that really mattered; it didn't change what he wanted.

"Remember when I told you what I wanted?"

"Yes," said Murphy nervously, "but you won't find it here. Anyway you hate me."

"So? Love...hate...it's all passion, and passion makes for great sex," Heath said, quite proud of himself for coming up with that line. Murphy should appreciate it, he's a writer after all.

"I take it back," Murphy said after a long pause, "you're not drunk, you're _really_ drunk. Now let me go." And Heath let go, because suddenly he was too tired to argue.

"See you later Heath," was the last thing Heath remembered hearing before he fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Holy shit, no one can know about this. What the hell had he been thinking?! Heath has to find Murphy and make sure the idiot knows that what he said meant absolutely nothing. Heath rounded the corner of the Surf Club and conveniently nearly ran into the stupid idiot that was plaguing his thoughts. Taking the opportunity to fix this mess, Heath grabbed Murphy and shoved him into the wall.

"Easy there," Murphy said with a grin. It made Heath madder than if Murphy had fought back.

"Don't look at me like that," Heath said viciously. "I just wanna make sure we're clear about last night yeah? Nothing happened. Ok?"

"Ok. No one said it did. But if you're not careful people might start getting ideas," Murphy said, alluding to the fact that they were pressed very close together.

"Shut up," Heath said with a final shove before letting go of the other man and taking a few steps back. Murphy took a step forward and brushed his clothes straight.

"If however what you meant to say was 'Liam, can you please not mention the fact that I hit on you last night' then that's fine. I won't say anything."

xxx

This is pure gold. It's been a while since Liam had one up on Heath, it'll be fun to watch him squirm.

"Good," Heath barked out and moved to leave, but Liam wasn't about to make it that easy on Heath.

"But I can't do it for nothing," Liam said, making it clear to Heath who held the power in this situation.

"How about you do it so your face stays intact," Heath shot back with that Braxton arrogance.

"You wouldn't ruin my face, you think I'm hot," Liam said, making the last part a little louder than necessary, purely to stir Heath up. For all Heath's talk Liam was ninety percent sure Heath wouldn't actually hit him.

"Keep your voice down," Heath said in a panicked, angry whisper, "I do not."

"If you say so," Liam shrugged, smiling at Heath in a way that said he didn't believe Heath at all. "But you do seem awfully touchy about it."

"I do not," Heath said again, checking himself too late and proving Liam's point. Liam's smile widened, it really was great to have Heath on the back foot for once. Heath, seemingly at a loss as to what to do next, fell back into his default mode of thug. "Stay the hell away from me," Heath commanded irritably, shoving Liam one last time and stalking off.

"But we haven't finished negotiating yet," Liam called after Heath cheerfully, not wanting to let Heath have the final say and because he knew it would piss Heath off. Heath's amusing reply was to stick his finger up at Liam as he continued his dramatic exit.


	4. Chapter 4

Hopefully Heath would rock up to Angelo's tonight. He did most nights and Liam was keen to tease him some more. Since Bianca had left him, Liam had found himself wallowing in self-pity and making Heath's life miserable provided a welcome distraction and allowed him to take a small amount of revenge on Heath for stealing his girl. But Heath knew Liam was working tonight and maybe that would be enough to keep him away. Liam just had to hope that the lure of free booze was more enticing to Heath than avoiding their 'situation' was. Barely five minutes later as hoped, Heath showed up.

"Hey Heath," Liam called to the other man, giving him a smile and a wave as he did so. Being nice to Heath seemed to piss him off the most.

xxx

Heath turned his attention to the bar where Murphy was grinning and waving at him like a moron. Heath had spent the day freaking out about Murphy blabbing and had finally come to the conclusion that he didn't give a fuck if Murphy did talk, no one would believe a word of it. Deciding to share his revelation with Murphy, Heath headed over to the bar, maybe this would make Murphy leave him alone.

"Murphy," Heath said as pleasantly as he could manage, so as not to draw attention to their conversation. "I don't give a shit who you tell, as if anyone will believe you, so you can stick whatever you were gonna ask for up your arse," Heath finished with a victorious smile.

xxx

Well damn, that was no fun at all. Heath not giving a shit was a total let down, and took the upper hand away from Liam. And so Liam changed tactics without really thinking, saying the first thing that popped into his head.

"Maybe I was gonna ask for sex, you'd like that wouldn't you?" Liam spoke the words with a little more venom than he intended. Heath's reply was a fist in the jaw. Pain blossomed in Liam's face, he couldn't believe it, Heath actually hit him. Liam swung back, but Heath was on the other side of the bar and all he'd had to do was take a quick step back to avoid the blow.

"Hey! What's going on?" Brax said as he came over to stand beside Heath.

"Murphy was being a tosser like usual," Heath answered with a pout. Brax frowned at Heath and turned his attention to Liam.

"Liam?" Brax said in a demanding tone, wanting his side of the story. Liam rubbed his aching jaw and Heath glared at him. This was Liam's chance to tell Brax everything, Heath would hate that.

"It's nothing Brax," Liam told his boss, "just Heath being Heath." Brax continued to gaze at Liam and Liam thought he was going to ask more questions but thankfully Brax let it drop.

"It better be nothing," Brax said and then he turned back to Heath, raising his hand to point at his brother. "You stay the hell away from him. Throwing punches in here is bad for business."

"Fine," Heath said sulkily but Brax was already heading back to the kitchen.

Liam looked at Heath then, wondering if he was going to do as Brax had asked. Heath met his gaze and it was a puzzled look that Liam saw, not the anger he'd expected to find.

"Later Murphy," Heath said before turning and walking out. Liam had no idea what that was supposed to mean.


	5. Chapter 5

This was all getting way too weird. Murphy being an annoying dickhead was one thing but Murphy covering for him? Well that was another thing altogether and it freaked Heath out. Why the hell would Murphy do that? Once more Heath realised he was wasting way too much time thinking about that tosser, he needed to focus on what was important. Heath walked into the diner hoping Bianca would be here for her morning coffee. He was in luck, she'd just picked up her cup and was heading for the door.

"Hey Bianca," Heath greeted. Bianca looked good today, but then again, she always did.

"Hi Heath," she replied with a guarded smile, stepping past him and out the door.

"So I was thinking we could get dinner tonight," Heath said, falling into step beside Bianca, "at Angelo's or something."

"I don't know Heath..." she said, still walking.

"Hey c'mon," Heath said quickening his pace to step in front of her, forcing her to stop and look at him. "Why not? It's just dinner," Heath finished with his best attempt at sweetie eyes. It worked. He saw her resolve against him crumble.

"Ok Heath," she consented, "just dinner."

"Great," he said giving her a charming smile, "I'll pick you up at seven." Ha, take that Murphy.

xxx

Really? They were gonna do this here? Heath and Bianca had just showed up at Angelo's for dinner. Bianca was done up to the nines as usual and even Heath had managed to put on jeans and a collared shirt. The shirt was a deep plum colour and it suited him. Bloody hell, Liam was going to have to suffer through this whole sickening display, maybe Heath intended it to be that way. At least Liam was working the bar, so he wouldn't have to deal with them directly and thankfully their table was as far from the bar as it could be. Liam watched as Bianca stood by her chair waiting for Heath to pull it out for her but Heath didn't notice and simply sat in his own seat. Bianca huffed and pulled the chair out herself, while Heath, seemingly oblivious, picked up a menu. Liam couldn't help the smirk that crept onto his face at Heath's mistake, trust Heath to be the gentleman, not. It was at that moment that Heath looked up, his eyes landing on Liam. Heath scowled at Liam, which only served to widen Liam's grin. Maybe this evening wouldn't be so bad after all.

xxx

Try as he might Heath couldn't shake the feeling that Murphy was still watching him and it was really fucking annoying. Every now and then Heath glanced towards the bar, sure he'd catch Murphy looking, but apart from that first idiot grin, he hadn't. On this particular glance he saw a good-looking chick in a blue dress walk up to the bar. She flashed her pearly whites at Murphy as he approached her. Murphy smiled back and chatted to her which irritated Heath, there should be more pouring and less talking from the bartender.

"Heath what's the matter with you tonight?" Bianca whined.

"What d'ya mean?" Heath asked irritably. God, was she never satisfied? He'd brought her out for a nice meal, even bothered to get dressed up and still it wasn't good enough.

"I just mean you seem a little distracted."

Now Murphy was leaning forward, still chatting to the lady and looking far too pleased with himself. He had no right...he was working...Brax wasn't gonna be happy about this...

"Heath!" Bianca said, smacking her hand down on the table and demanding attention.

"God Bianca, is anything ever good enough for you?" Heath snapped, wasn't taking her out for dinner enough? Did he have to listen to her as well?

"Apparently not," she huffed and stormed off. Who did she think she was? Nobody walked out on him on a date. Heath glared across the room at Murphy who happened to look over at the same moment, his too blue eyes meeting Heath's. This was all Murphy's fault and Heath was gonna teach him a lesson. Heath shoved his chair back and stalked across the room, coming to a stop beside the brunette Murphy seemed to be making progress with.

"Hey Murphy," Heath interrupted, the girl giving him a disapproving look. "Sorry," Heath told her, "I just wanted to make sure that my buddy was alright." She continued to look at him, more curious than angry now. As was Murphy. Heath leaned closer to Murphy. "How's everything, you know, downstairs? The rash all cleared up has it?" Heath asked in a low voice as though he were trying to be subtle. It had the desired effect. The girl threw Murphy a disgusted look and walked off.

xxx

"What'd you do that for?" Liam asked incredulously. Seriously what was Heath's problem?

"It's your fault Bianca left," Heath stated accusingly.

"You can't be serious, _that's_ what this is about?" Liam said, feeling the familiar anger Heath induced in him beginning to rise. Heath's accusation was irrational. Heath was just pissed off because Bianca had walked out on him and was taking his frustration out on Liam. "Just because you missed out I have to too?" Liam wasn't that upset about the girl leaving, he wasn't even sure what had compelled him to flirt with her. It was more the principle of the thing; Heath had no right to interfere in his life.

"Yep," Heath answered with a smug satisfaction. Right, two could play at that game.

"So that's how it's gonna be..." Liam said, resigning himself to this petty war.

"Looks like it," Heath agreed with feigned resignation.

"Fine then," Liam sighed, if it was gonna be like that then bring it on.


	6. Chapter 6

Heath had given Bianca a few days to cool off. During those few days he'd thought about how best to get at Murphy, but unfortunately hadn't come up with any brilliant schemes. Though if he was honest, he hadn't tried very hard. His focus at the moment was on getting Bianca back on side. He found her outside the Surf Club.

"Bianca, can we talk?" Heath asked politely, to gauge Bianca's mood.

"I don't know Heath, can we?" she answered sarcastically. Ok, she was still cranky.

"I'm sorry Bianca, I shouldn't have snapped at you the other night, it wasn't your fault. I just had some stuff going on, you know, brother stuff." She should buy that, there was always some drama going on in the lives of the Braxton's. Her hard expression softened a little when she heard his explanation. "Let me make it up to you," Heath ventured, "go to dinner with me again, I promise it won't be like last time." She took a moment to consider before consenting.

"Ok Heath," she said more than a little warily, "but this is it. You mess this up and we're done."

"I can live with that," Heath answered. Finally things were going his way.

xxx

Perfect, Heath and Bianca had just walked into the restaurant together. Liam had been plotting his revenge for days and his opportunity was here. Liam felt no guilt at all, Heath had asked for this, it was a dumb move on his part to bring Bianca back here. Once Heath and Bianca were settled Liam picked up the bottle of wine he'd selected. Liam made his way over to their table and placed an empty glass in front of each of them.

"Are you happy with the selection?" Liam asked, holding the bottle up for Bianca to read the label. Heath opened his mouth to protest but Bianca spoke before he could.

"This is expensive wine," Bianca stated, obviously impressed.

"It is," Liam agreed, he was gonna have to pay for it but this would be worth it. "Heath wanted you to have the best, to say sorry for the other night." Liam poured them each a glass.

"Oh Heath," she said fondly, assuming Liam was referring to Heath's outburst. Heath rolled with it the smug bastard, taking the credit and lapping up the adoring attention from Bianca, making Liam's next move all the sweeter.

"He shouldn't have gone home with that other girl after you left."

"Oh my God Heath! I can't believe you!" Bianca said in an initial burst of outrage, but then she calmed as realisation dawned on her. "It was that woman in the blue dress wasn't it? That's why you kept looking towards the bar all night."

"No! Bianca I-" Heath began but she cut him off.

"You're disgusting, don't ever speak to me again," she declared before storming out. It took Heath several moments to recover, several moments in which Liam had time to visualise Heath punching him out, but Heath didn't.

"Well played prick," Heath commented, as he stood and snatched the expensive wine from Liam's hand.

"Hey!" Liam protested.

"It's the least you can do," Heath said before picking up his glass and stalking off to his favourite booth in the corner.

xxx

The restaurant was empty, it was probably after closing time, but Heath hadn't finished sulking yet, so he stayed put. And he wasn't just sulking he was pondering too. Heath had surprised himself as much as he'd surprised Murphy judging by the look on the other man's face, when he hadn't come up swinging. Bianca walking out tonight felt like an inevitability maybe that's why he hadn't gotten angry. Heath raised the glass to his lips and took a sip. As far as wine went, this one wasn't bad. Bianca said it was expensive, he'd have to make sure Murphy paid Brax for it. Over the past few days Heath had been struggling to come to terms with his lack of genuine interest in Bianca. Maybe it was simply the fact that if Murphy didn't want her there was no fun in winning her, she was pretty high maintenance after all.

"Look Heath, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that," Murphy said, coming to a halt beside the table and looking down at Heath. God he was infuriating, just looking at him made Heath's blood boil.

"Get lost Murphy," Heath told the idiot, he didn't wanna hear some stupid apology.

xxx

"No, I don't think I will," Liam shot back, cranky that his apology had been thrown back in his face. Liam slid into the booth beside Heath, sure it was the best way to annoy Heath more.

"What the hell are you doing?" Heath asked, the alcohol in his system making him only slightly louder than usual. He was nowhere near the slurring mess he'd been the night he got stuck into the whiskey. Suddenly this situation felt very familiar and Liam would be damned if he was gonna get stuck babysitting Heath again, besides he'd paid for that outrageously priced wine, he may as well enjoy it. Heath poured himself another glass and Liam snatched it up and drank it before Heath could. The glass was slightly warmer where Heath's mouth had been.

xxx

"Hey jackass! That was mine!" Heath said indignantly as he watched the red liquid disappear between Murphy's lips. Murphy pulled the empty glass away from his mouth and sat it on the table, but Heath was only faintly aware of that. His eyes were glued to Murphy's mouth and the dark stain the wine had left on his lips. He had a sudden urge to taste them.

"What?" Murphy said, but there was no anger in his voice just a slight quiver of uncertainty. At the sound of his voice Heath's eyes flicked up to meet the other man's blue ones, and seeing nothing there that told him to stop, Heath closed the gap between them and slammed their mouths together.

xxx

Liam had been so angry, so ready for a fight but then Heath had looked at him like _that_ and suddenly he was being kissed. Heath Braxton was kissing him and even though Liam was set alight by it, he still couldn't let Heath win. Liam returned the kiss, more than that, he tried to seize control of it, their battle for dominance carrying over into this arena too. Liam's heart hammered in his chest and he felt that warm knot building in his belly as they each battled to gain the upper hand. Liam wanted Heath to suffer, wanted him to know who the better man was, he wanted to let Heath have this and then take it away. But Heath held his own and somewhere amongst it all Liam got lost and knew only that he wanted more... Liam's hand found Heath's face, just for a moment, just long enough to think how strange, and strangely right, it was to feel the stubble on Heath's cheek, before Heath wrenched away, leaving Liam with a cold and wretched feeling of loss.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Heath demanded, still breathy from their kiss.

"Me?" Liam said, Heath's abrupt turn to hostility taking him by surprise and putting him on the defence, "you started it."

"Yeah...well I...," Heath floundered, "well _you_ kissed _back_." Heath said as though that was a far worse crime than him instigating the kiss in the first place. Not that Liam thought any of it was criminal.

"I-," Liam began, not sure what he was going to say but he didn't have a chance to say anything because Heath cut him off.

"Get outta my way," Heath demanded, shoving Liam out of the booth and taking off. Liam watched Heath go, all but running out the door, and he wondered where he'd left his keys, it was his turn to lock up tonight.


	7. Chapter 7

The last thing on Heath's mind before he fell asleep was kissing Murphy. Murphy of all people for Christ's sake, what the hell had he been thinking? The first thing on Heath's mind when he woke up was kissing Murphy. And the slimy bastard had kissed him back, why the hell would he do that? Murphy had no right to be so...involved in it, no right to make Heath feel so desirable or so good about it and definitely no right to enjoy it...fuck this. It was early, but Heath grabbed his surf board and headed for the beach, it would be the best way to get his mind off this.

It was a brilliant morning for surfing, the sky was clear and the water was rough, it'd take all his concentration to ride these waves, perfect. Heath paddled out, quickly growing used to the cool water and by the time he reached the big breakers the water felt warm. He watched the waves roll in, not bothering to wait for the best ones, just riding each wave he was back in place to catch. He rode wave after wave, revelling in the wipe-outs, he deserved them.

xxx

Liam woke from one of the worst night's sleep he'd had in a long time. He felt tired and groggy and knew there was no hope of falling asleep again, his memory wouldn't let him. Liam hauled himself out of bed and got dressed. On a morning like this he needed to clear his head and a fresh ocean breeze was the best way to do that. Just stepping out of the house made him feel better, the cool morning air already making him more alert. He walked down to the beach, hoping to find it relatively empty, he needed time alone to think. He sat in the sand, well above the waterline and watched the waves roll in endlessly, the sound of the rushing water helped soothe him at first but after a while their ceaseless movement became disconcerting, no matter how much he wanted them to stop, they never would, never could. Liam moved his attention from where the white foam rolled up the sand to the cresting waves further out, where a lone surfer rode the waves, attempting to ride every wave that came his way. It looked exhausting but Liam envied him the abandon of it. Eventually Liam could distract himself no longer and memories of last night played over in his head and he was at a loss as to what to think of them. It all felt kind of unreal, never in a million years did he think Heath would kiss him. Or that he'd kiss back, not that Liam put too much stock in that. It wasn't that he desired Heath, it was a just a spur of the moment reaction to their rivalry, he wanted to get the upper hand on Heath in any way he could. That must be it because the alternative was too crazy to even contemplate. Liam's attention drifted back to the surfer who was heading into shore. As the man emerged from the water, the moment had an odd, dreamlike quality to it. You didn't sit on the beach alone thinking of someone only to look down and see them gliding out of the water, glistening with saltwater in the early morning sunlight, looking positively alluring. No, that didn't happen in real life, except this was real life and Liam was watching Heath Braxton do just that. Liam found he couldn't look away and he hoped Heath wouldn't notice him, but it wasn't to be. Liam knew Heath had seen him because he saw him tense, saw the contentment brought on by an early morning surf drain away and then Heath was walking towards him.

"What are you doing here?" Heath asked suspiciously, looking down at Liam.

"I needed to be alone, there was something I needed to think about," Liam said with a wry smile.

"Probably the same thing I came here not to think about." So it was playing on Heath's mind as well. Liam stood, wanting to be on level terms with the other man.

"Heath," Liam said, hoping Heath would see that he was sincere when the asked this. He didn't want to push the point but he wanted Heath to know he was here if he needed him, what had happened between them was important, or at least had the potential to be. "Should we talk about last night?" And as Liam said the words he was struck by the memory of how he'd felt when Heath pulled away and he realised that he wanted to talk about it, wanted to understand it.

"There's nothing to talk about," Heath said, putting a definite end to the conversation. For a moment Liam was hurt by Heath's dismissal but he should have known better than to think he could have a meaningful conversation with him, or that Heath was even capable of such a thing.

"Be a jerk about it then," Liam said, his temper getting the better of him. He was frustrated at Heath for closing down, frustrated at himself for not understanding this whole situation better and even more annoyed that he wanted to.

"I will," Heath shot back, "beats being a little bitch about it like you." And with that Heath walked off, leaving Liam alone with that fiery feeling that Heath was so good at kindling in him.

xxx

Heath couldn't get Murphy's stupid face out of his head. The look in his ridiculously blue eyes when Heath shot him down, the blazing light in them when he'd called Heath a jerk. There was no denying the thrill he felt when Murphy was fired up. Even the memory of it did things to him that it shouldn't, God help him. What Heath needed was a distraction, and a bloody good one at that. Commitment had never been a strong suit of Heath's, he didn't like having to show up to work every day, it was part of the reason he lived the life he did, but right now working seemed like a good way to take his mind off other things.

"Brax, I need a job," Heath told his brother. Brax always had solutions, he'd have something for Heath to do. Brax gave him an amused smile, obviously he didn't think Heath was serious.

"You mean something at Angelo's?"

"God no, anywhere but there..." Heath said maybe a little too quickly. Brax's smile vanished, he was all business now.

"You mean a _job_ job." Heath hadn't actually thought about it but now that Brax mentioned it, it was perfect.

"Yeah, that's exactly what I mean." Brax considered for a moment before he spoke.

"Alright Heath, but I want you to remember I'm serious about this whole going legit thing," Brax said it in a way that left no doubt he absolutely meant it. "But there is still a bit of left over stuff I need to move. I'd rather it was all gone in one lot and I think Adam's our best bet to unload it all at once."

"Ok, what do I need to do?"

"I'll set it up, just show up when and where I tell you. For now go pack up the gear and I'll call you. It's in the usual place."

"Alright," Heath agreed, his mind already running through what he'd need and how best to go about this.

"And Heath..."

"Yeah."

"Don't get caught." Heath gave his brother a scowl, as if Brax needed to tell him that.


	8. Chapter 8

The first thing Liam had done when he got home was get in the shower, he'd needed to cool off. His mind had been racing, he'd been so full of anger and frustration and longing, all of that mixed in with memories of the previous night when Heath had kissed him, and this morning when he'd fought with Heath...again, and of how good Heath had looked walking out of the water. It was all so confusing and it had stirred strange feelings in his body as well as his mind and he'd found his release with his hand wrapped around himself and Heath's name on his lips. And it had felt sooo good...

But now he had to go to work. And Heath might be there, Liam wasn't sure he could face that. In the moment it had felt right but now, it was...well he wasn't sure, but his rational mind told him that it was wrong and the sick feeling in his gut seemed to agree. One, he'd just one take one. Just one to take the edge off, so he wasn't all wound up, so he'd be able to play it cool if Heath did show up. Tomorrow this would all be forgotten and he'd be alright, he wouldn't need any more pills. Liam found the pills he'd stashed away, there were only three, and he was glad he'd decided to keep a few, just in case... He swallowed a pill and felt better already because now he didn't have to worry.

xxx

Heath's plan was working brilliantly, he hadn't thought about Murphy all day, well except for now and this didn't count because he was thinking about not thinking about him. Heath was done packing everything up, why hadn't Brax called yet? Heath didn't want to be left idle, who knew where his thoughts would stray. Thankfully his phone rang.

"Brax."

"Listen, I called Adam and he's not keen, so we'll call it off for now ok?" This was so not what Heath wanted to hear.

"Or I could push it for you..."

"I don't know Heath..."

"C'mon Brax, we've been quiet for a while now the cops aren't watching, and this way you'll be rid of it."

"I'll think about it. I gotta go."

"See ya." Heath filled his pockets before he left. Now that he'd sorted through all this crap, he may as well sell it.


	9. Chapter 9

Thankfully Heath hadn't showed up at Angelo's last night so Liam hadn't had to face him. But it did present the problem that he could show up tonight and it will still be the first time Liam's seen him since, well... _that_ , and it's all just way too sickening to handle. Just one more. One more wouldn't hurt. Two pills is hardly an addiction...he'd already been there, he knew what an addiction was. Liam swallowed the pill, now he could do this. His only concern was the lone pill left, what if it was a few days before he ran into Heath?

xxx

Liam's shift was over and Heath hadn't showed up. He only had one pill left, maybe he should look into getting a few more. It was dark as Liam started his walk home. Across the car park he saw two men and Liam had been a party to enough dodgy drug deals to know one when he saw one. For once luck was on his side...or not. Liam recognised the dealer, it was Heath. Damn.

By the time Liam got home he wasn't in a good place. In fact he was freaking-the-fuck-out. He paced his bedroom, a circular argument rolling around and around in his head. He wanted more pills and Heath was the obvious person to ask. But avoiding Heath, or dealing with Heath, or whatever was the reason he needed the pills in the first place. So if he went to Heath, he'd have to face Heath and wouldn't that defeat the purpose, or make it worse or whatever? Liam didn't know what to do...he paced and argued with himself until he had no idea whether he was coming or going. If Heath had just showed up at Angelo's like he always did, Liam could've moved past this and got on with his life, trust Heath to make life difficult. And anyway, why the fuck hadn't Heath been in for two nights? Was he avoiding something, or someone? Maybe he was and that upset Liam even more, and that fact that it upset him, upset him too...

Fuck this, he needed more pills and the quickest way to get them was to ask Heath. He downed the last one and walked out into the night.

xxx

Heath was woken by someone bashing on the door. He grabbed his cricket bat and quietly approached the door. His recent activities had him a little more on edge than usual. He pulled the curtain across just enough to peek out and see who the fuck would be around here at two-thirty in the morning. What the fuck? It was Murphy. Heath opened the door, intending to tell Murphy off for waking him up, and for being an idiot in general, but Murphy spoke before Heath had a chance.

"Heath, can you hook me up?"

"What?" Heath asked blankly, initially misinterpreting Murphy's intention.

"I saw you earlier, I just need something to take the edge off, you know? I've got plenty of cash," Murphy finished, fishing around in his pocket and producing some notes.

"Put that away," Heath said, taking in the fact that Murphy was obviously high right now. "I haven't got anything for you." Heath's attention was drawn from Murphy by Casey.

"What's going on Heath?" his little brother said, rubbing his eyes, still half asleep.

"Nothing," Heath told him, "go back to bed Casey."

"Hi Casey," Murphy called from behind Heath.

"Oh hey Liam," Casey mumbled, and then he turned around and wandered off back to bed. Heath turned on Murphy.

"Go home Murphy, I'm not giving you anything, you're high."

"Only a little bit," Murphy replied, demonstrating with his thumb and index finger how small the amount was.

"No," Heath said firmly. He wasn't going to help Murphy fall back into bad habits. Just because Heath sold drugs, it didn't mean he approved of taking them.

"Well then get fucked jerk," Murphy said, shoving Heath in the chest before he turned and sooked off. Heath had a moment of watching him go in which he felt a pang of unexpected concern and fuck it, he couldn't let Murphy wander off into the night high and angry and desperate, who knew what he'd do? Heath raced into his bedroom and threw some clothes on, then he was out the door after Murphy. He caught up to him in the park near the beach.

"Murphy wait."

"Changed your mind?" Murphy said hopefully and Heath didn't like that at all.

"No."

"Then piss off and leave me alone." Geez, Murphy was hostile tonight; it made Heath wonder what had happened to make Murphy start using again. Murphy attempted to leave again but Heath was overcome by the need to get to the bottom of this.

"Sit," Heath commanded, shoving Murphy down onto the park bench, the idiot had less chance of hurting himself if he was sitting still. Heath took a seat beside him and here was where it got awkward, Heath was no good at this mushy kinda stuff. They sat in silence for a while and then Murphy spoke.

"In vino veritas."

"Huh?"

"It's Latin."

"You speak Latin?" Heath said doubtfully and that made Murphy laugh.

"No, I'm just a Val Kilmer fan." Heath had no idea what Murphy was talking about. "It's from the movie Tombstone."

"Never heard of it."

"Oh my God! It's the best movie ever! It's a western. The true story of Wyatt Earp the greatest frontier lawman ever and his best friend Doc Holliday the gambler and accused murderer. You know? The gunfight at the OK Corral. You have to see it, we can watch it together some time."

"Ok," Heath agreed to keep the peace, he was a little worried, Murphy was all over the place. They sat in silence for a while longer, Heath wasn't sure what to do next, so he asked a question to fill the silence between them.

"Hey Murphy, what does that 'in vino' thing mean?" Murphy turned and looked Heath in the eye, his gaze far too intense for the triviality of the question. Suddenly Heath dreaded the answer.

"It means 'in wine truth'." That didn't make any sense but as Heath met Murphy's expectant gaze and the taste of a wine-flavoured kiss filled his memory, it made terrifyingly perfect sense. And without meaning to Heath had leaned in closer to Murphy, so their mouths were only inches apart.

"Heath," Murphy said softly, resting his hand on Heath's face, "I wish you'd let me kiss you." Heath had plenty of time to think about why this was so wrong, plenty of time to pull away, but he didn't. He let Murphy kiss him, because Murphy seemed to need this. Heath intended to do just as Murphy had asked and let himself be kissed but his traitorous mouth remembered Murphy's and how good it had felt to do this, and uncontrollably he returned the kiss. God, no one had ever made him feel like this, or feel so much, the need to be near Murphy was becoming addictive and it was that thought that wrenched Heath out of the near-inescapable fire building between them. Heath pulled away, not because he wanted to but because he knew he had to. Heath held Murphy's face between his hands, it was an intimate and familiar gesture he felt he'd earned.

"You need to go home now," Heath said and quickly hurried on when he saw the anger start to rise in the other man. "I promise we'll talk about this in the morning."


	10. Chapter 10

The harsh light of day brought some much needed perspective with it. Heath shouldn't be letting a bloke kiss him! Hell, Murphy was turning him soft. And this morning it also occurred to Heath that if a loser like Murphy had figured out what he was doing then maybe others would to. He wanted to know exactly what Murphy had seen and to make sure Murphy wouldn't say anything. Or so he told himself as he headed over to Murphy's place, but it was getting harder and harder to believe his own bullshit, the evidence was piling up against it.

xxx

Liam was faced with one of those awkward moments in life when you suggest something when you're half cut and then in the sober light of day you don't know whether to pursue it or not. Was it an in-the-moment, throw-away agreement to appease someone under the influence? Or did they mean it; was it a moment when barriers were down and people said what they really truly meant? Liam turned the Tombstone DVD over in his hands, would it just be too weird to follow through on watching this with Heath? There was a knock at the door, Liam set the DVD down and answered it. As though conjured by thought, Heath stood there. Heath's words from last night ran through Liam's head, _I promise we'll talk about this in the morning_. At the time Liam had believed him, he'd been high, but when he woke up this morning he knew Heath wouldn't keep his promise, except, here Heath was.

"Can I come in?" Heath asked with a hint of a smile.

"Um, yeah, sure," Liam said quickly, realising he'd been standing there like an idiot.

xxx

Heath followed Murphy inside and suddenly he felt claustrophobic.

"Wanna go for a walk?"

"Ok," Murphy agreed. They walked in silence for a while and Heath was strangely comfortable with it, it was enough to know that Murphy was alright. But how long would he stay that way if he kept using? Heath was going out on a limb here, he hated this touchy-feely crap but this seemed important.

"Why'd you do it Murphy? Why start using again?"

"I, ah- it's not important," was Murphy's, no, Liam's response.

"I don't believe that, you can tell me Liam," Heath said, testing the other man's name in his mouth as well as his mind. It was a strange feeling, it felt almost as intimate as what they shared last night. Heath kind of liked it.

"I'd rather not say," Liam answered, hostility creeping into his voice.

"C'mon," Heath prompted, his temper starting to rise.

"No," Murphy said with finality, shutting down Heath's attempt to help him. Right then, two could play at that game. If Murphy wanted be an asshole about it, Heath could be one too.

"I knew there was a reason I didn't like you, you're a wanker. Don't say I didn't try." Ha, that shut Murphy up, he didn't have a comeback for that one. Heath turned and walked off. He was angry at Murphy for making an idiot of him, and angry at himself for being no good at this 'feelings' stuff. Well Heath had learned his lesson, this was the last time he would try this 'talking about his feelings' crap. From now on, Murphy was on his own.

xxx

Well. Liam probably couldn't have fucked that up better if he'd tried. But what was he supposed to say? 'I couldn't handle that I jerked off over you?' Maybe he should've, Heath's face would've been priceless. Oh God, what a mess. And it was a mess that shouldn't be messy. Gahh, did that even make sense? The obvious solution to this...problem...situation...whatever...would be to avoid Heath. And if he did run into him, just to be polite and move on. But Liam couldn't do that, didn't want to do that. There was no denying the attraction he felt to Heath, whatever its cause. No one made Liam feel like Heath did. No one else had ever made him feel so alive. _Love...hate...its all passion_ , Heath's drunken words were so true, and it was passion like Liam had never known. But it was more than that. Last night Heath had come after him when he could've just let him walk away, and Heath had let Liam kiss him, and Heath had come over here this morning like he'd promised and asked Liam why. He'd asked why because he cared, Liam realised. Heath Braxton cared about him. And then Liam was struck by a memory of his name, his first name, on Heath's lips. It hadn't registered at the time, Liam had been so occupied with Heath not finding out the reason for him falling off the wagon. And Liam kicked himself now for not acknowledging it, using his name meant something to Heath and because of that it meant something to Liam too. Damnit, Liam hoped he hadn't missed his chance.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The POV jumps around a bit in this chapter, hope it's not too confusing...

Heath had let himself get carried away, he wasn't a bloody poofter! What the hell was Murphy doing to him? Heath needed to get this under control, he figured he wouldn't have too much trouble with it, there were so many reasons to dislike Murphy. For starters he was annoying. And what was the go with his lame rock star vibe? Just because he pulled off dressing like one, didn't mean he was one. His music was crap, nowhere near enough bass. That's probably why his latest record deal fell through. And then there was the drug issue and the teacher thing. Those who can't do teach and Murphy had even screwed that up because he'd showed up to class high. And Heath really had a problem with blue eyes, especially Murphy's, they were so bright and captivating, no one should be allowed to have eyes like that. And hadn't he heard of scissors or razors? Murphy needed a haircut and a shave, so what if that grungy look suited him?

"Heath? Heath!" Casey's voice interrupted Heath's thoughts.

"What?" Heath snapped at Casey, he was in no mood for...well anything but brooding.

"Are we cooking dinner or going to Angelo's?"

"Why the fuck would we cook when Brax owns a restaurant?"

"Geez, settle down Heath, it's just dinner."

"Whatever. Let's go." Heath stomped over to the front door and reefed it open with way more force than was necessary. And there was Murphy, Christ, Heath just couldn't catch a break.

"You," was all Heath could manage to say though his rage. At least it wiped the smile off Murphy's face.

"Hello to you too," Liam replied measuredly, determined not to let Heath's rudeness rile him, and conscious of the fact they had an audience. Heath seemed to be too as he turned to Casey.

"Go ahead Casey, I'll catch up."

"Ok," Casey shrugged and left.

"'What'd ya want?" Heath said, feeling no need to play nice.

"I came over to apologise."

"You don't have to apologise," Heath began politely enough, "I don't give a fuck what you do, you're nothing to me."

"And there it is," Murphy said irritatingly, "I don't know why I bothered, you're such a jerk."

"Yeah and you're a whiny, failed rock star who can't function without popping pills."

"And you're a second string brother who can't hold down a job."

"Fuck you, you're music sucks."

"And you're tattoos are shit."

"You're eyes are too blue."

"Well you're a crap kisser," Liam accused. It wasn't true but he was running out of insults.

"Prove it," Heath shot back, too fired up to care that it didn't really make sense. Murphy's reply was to shove Heath back into the wall and slam their mouths together. It was a frenzied kiss, both of them determined to take what they could, while they could. Liam pressed his body against Heath's, wanting to feel as much of the other man as he could, and loving that Heath had nowhere to go. Heath's back was cool where he was pinned against the wall, but his front where Murphy was pressed against him burned. God, Murphy wanted him bad, and the feeling was mutual, but Heath couldn't let Murphy have it all his own way. As their mouths did battle, Heath slid his hand behind Murphy's neck. He ran his fingers up Murphy's skin and slid them into his hair, and clutching a fistful, he pulled Murphy's hot mouth from his own.

"God, what you do to me..." Liam panted when they broke apart.

"How was that?" Heath challenged, not sure himself whether he was trying to prove Murphy wrong or seeking approval.

"I'm not sure...maybe you better do it again," was Murphy's sassy reply. That was all the encouragement Heath needed, his whole body was screaming for more, more, more. Heath kissed Murphy's mouth again. God, this was so much better when neither of them were drunk or high. And that thought brought with it the memory of Murphy's refusal to tell Heath why he'd taken the pills.

"No, get off me," Heath said, shoving Murphy back. "Why should I let you have what you want? You couldn't even answer a simple question." Liam was dazed for a moment by Heath's abrupt ending of their contact. Question, what question? _Why'd you do it Murphy? Why start using again?_ And in a moment of clarity Liam realised Heath's irrational anger tonight was because he'd hurt Heath's feelings.

"I'm sorry about that Heath, I was just embarrassed I guess."

"Embarrassed?" That hadn't been the explanation Heath was expecting and it took the edge off his anger.

"Yeah, and I'd still rather not say." And just like that, Murphy managed to put the edge right back on Heath's anger.

"Christ you're annoying, no wonder you're Mrs skipped the country to get away from you. But at least your kid doesn't have to put up with a loser, druggie Dad."

The next thing Heath knew was pain in his face as Murphy's fist collided with his mouth.

xxx

Meanwhile at Angelo's...

Brax noticed Casey walk into the restaurant alone. Of course, it was dinner time.

"Hey Case, you want a pizza?"

"Yeah, make it enough for Heath too."

"Alright, where is Heath anyway?"

"Liam showed up at home and Heath said he had some stuff to sort out with him."

"What stuff?" Brax asked, it better not be what he was thinking.

"I dunno," Casey shrugged, "he was over the night before last too, woke us up at two in the morning, I guess it was kinda weird..." Casey trailed off, as though the thought hadn't really occurred to him before now. Yes, it was weird and Brax had told Heath not to go ahead with this, did his loose cannon brother ever think?

"Grab a seat Casey and I'll get someone to come take your order." Casey did as he was told and once Brax had him sorted he headed outside and jumped in his ute. Brax didn't have too much time to get wound up as he drove home, it was less than a five minute drive after all. Bloody Heath, on what planet did he think it was a good idea to supply Brax's employees with drugs? Brax pulled up in the driveway, hoping he wasn't too late to put a stop to this. Brax arrived on the scene just in time to see Liam snap and punch Heath in the face. Knowing Heath, he probably deserved it.

xxx

Heath lifted his head in time to see Murphy disappear around the corner. Automatically his hand went to his mouth, he could feel his lip swelling already. He should probably feel bad about pushing Murphy's buttons enough to turn him to violence, but the overwhelming feeling flooding through him was lust. He hadn't thought Murphy'd had it in him. Heath rubbed his aching jaw, and tasted blood in his mouth, it sent a thrilling shiver through him; he wanted more. More of that heated emotion, more of that passion, more of this feeling of being so alive. Knowing he had the power to effect Murphy so much was intoxicating.

"Heath? Heath!" Brax didn't look happy. "What the hell was that about? If you sold him anything I swear I'll..." Brax. His brother Brax. Heath could still taste Murphy's mouth. He'd been kissing Murphy. Brax was looking at him expectantly. Brax was right here. Jesus Christ, how much had he seen? Lie. Play it cool and lie. _If you sold him anything..._ Sold? Drugs. Brax thought he was dealing to Murphy, thank fuck.

"Well?" Brax demanded.

"You saw what he did..." Heath said, testing Brax, it was pretty clever if Heath did say so himself...

"Yeah he punched you," Brax stated.

"Exactly. I wouldn't give him what he came for."

"Should I be worried?"

"Huh?"

"About Liam. Is he using again? Should I give him the boot from Angelo's?" Ok, maybe it wasn't so clever after all.

"No, don't do that Brax, it was just a misunderstanding..."

"Fine," Brax said. "But you better make sure you don't misunderstand this. Do not sell him drugs. In fact, don't sell any drugs, I told you I'd think about it." Brax finished, emphasizing his point by getting up in Heath's face.

"Alright, fine," Heath agreed to make Brax back off.

"I mean it," Brax said to reiterate the point.

"I get it," Heath told him and he meant it too.

"Good," Brax nodded and Heath saw the tension drain away. "Now what about that face? You want some ice for it?"

"Na," Heath replied, "Murphy hits like a girl." That wasn't true but he could hardly tell Brax that he wanted the pain and the bruise that would come, as a reminder of how good he felt now. Brax considered him for a moment longer and then let it go.

"C'mon, get in the car. Casey's ordered dinner for us." Heath did as Brax asked. Sitting next to his brother on the drive to Angelo's Heath really considered the possibility of his brother's finding out about Murphy. In the past it had just been an abstract idea but this close call had made it real. Would they laugh? Would they try to talk him out it? Would they disown him altogether? And with the endorphins still flowing through his system, Heath wasn't sure he really cared.


	12. Chapter 12

Liam settled himself on a seat near the water, close to where the Blaxland was docked. It was peaceful here in the late afternoon light, no incessant waves, maybe he'd be able to string a line or two together. He took his guitar from its case and held it, but he couldn't bring himself to strum a single note. Heath had no right. No right at all to talk about his family, Liam would never forgive him for this. And Liam was angry at himself too, for being the idiot Heath said he was, and believing that there was more to Heath, and that between them maybe there could've been...something. But Liam wasn't under that delusion anymore, not now he knew what Heath really thought of him... _loser, druggie Dad..._

"Hey mate, you alright?" Romeo called from the boat.

"Yeah," Liam lied, this wasn't something he could discuss, even with his best mate. Apparently Romeo wasn't convinced of Liam's 'alrightness', he was leaving the boat and heading towards Liam. Shit, maybe Heath had sent Liam off the deep end, who came up with words like 'alrightness'?

"You sure?" Romeo prompted, giving Liam a second chance to get this off his chest. Liam was determined to avoid the topic, hopefully Romeo wouldn't chuck a sook like Heath had...oh God, he had it bad. Liam shook his head to clear his thoughts.

"Yeah, it's nothing," Liam lied again.

"Ok," Romeo said uncertainly, "I've gotta go, I'm meeting Indi for dinner. You could come if you like..." Liam was grateful for the offer but it also made him feel pitiful.

"Three's a crowd," Liam said with a small smile, intended to say 'thank-you for trying to help but I'm not quite that pathetic yet'.

"Ok," Romeo said, letting it drop, "I'll see ya later."

"See ya." Liam watched Romeo go, heading off towards his dinner with Indi. Even though it shouldn't have, it made Liam think of Heath, which made him angry again. He needed to forget Heath, he wasn't worth all this anger and frustration. He needed to get the fuck over this and move on. It was bloody ridiculous anyway, it shouldn't be too hard to get over, there was every reason in the world to do so and none that made it worth holding onto...

xxx

Heath had only seen Murphy once since that night. It was in passing, Heath had called the other man's name but Murphy had walked straight past him, as though he hadn't even seen him. It bugged Heath. Very sensibly on his part, Heath thought, he'd given Murphy a couple of days to cool off but now Heath had had enough of waiting. He decided to approach Murphy while he was working at Angelo's, this way he'd have to talk to Heath, and there was less chance of copping another shiner in the gob as well. Heath had to walk right up to the bar before Murphy even looked at him. Murphy turned to Heath, nothing in his cool gaze but the expectation of a drink order. Heath hated it. He couldn't think straight when Murphy looked at him like that and with a jolt he realised he'd never actually seen this cold, indifference in Murphy before...that had to mean something.

"Can I get you anything?" Murphy asked in a flat, formal voice, and again Heath hated it. Say something to him! Anything! Heath's mind screamed at him.

"A beer," was all he came up with. Murphy plonked the bottle down in front of Heath and moved onto the next customer. Heath stared dumbly at the beer, what was he supposed to do with it? He didn't want a beer, he wanted...something, he wasn't sure. Something from Murphy. A frown, an insult, a derisive laugh, a sarcastic comment...something, anything...but Murphy didn't waver. He never changed that flat look, or that flat tone and eventually Heath gave up and left, feeling empty, like something vital to his being was missing.


	13. Chapter 13

Over the past few days Heath had become pretty good at brushing his teeth with a busted mouth. He wiped his face and looked in the mirror to examine the damage once again. Most of the swelling had gone down and the split on the left side of his top lip had knitted together fairly well. The bruise had been purple but was heading towards brown now, which wasn't as cool, but did mean he was healing. It was still tender to touch and Heath couldn't help poking it, just to feel the swell of pain it brought. It reminded him that Murphy wasn't a pushover and that he was worth the effort. Heath's 'accosting Murphy at work' plan wasn't working, so Heath decided to seek the other man out elsewhere, and this time he was determined to make Murphy talk to him.

Heath found Murphy on the beach, sitting in the sand in his jeans, seriously, who wore jeans, boots and a jacket to the beach? Without a word, Heath plonked down in the sand beside him. When Murphy turned his head and saw Heath he immediately moved to stand but Heath grabbed his arm and held him down.

"What's the rush Murphy?" Heath said challengingly. Murphy levelled his cool gaze at Heath and spoke in that cold, detached voice.

"Let go of me."

"Say please and maybe I will," Heath returned just to be irritating, anything to get a reaction.

"Now," was all Murphy said, his tone remaining the same.

"No," Heath stated, "not until you talk to me properly." Murphy didn't say anything, just held that cold stare, but then he started to relax. Heath relaxed a little too, loosening his grip on Murphy's arm, pleased that he was getting somewhere. For a moment, Heath turned his attention to the water, to gather his thoughts, and when he did Murphy wrenched his arm away and quickly stood up. He only got a few steps before Heath caught up with him. Heath stood in front of Murphy to stop him getting away, his frustration increasing when Murphy wouldn't even look at him.

"Look at what you did to me," Heath said, indicating to his bruised face. Murphy's eyes met Heath's but he didn't look at Heath's mouth. "You could at least say sorry..." Heath ranted, crazy at this emotionless Murphy, saying anything that might get a reaction. He wanted Murphy to tell him he deserved it, or ask why he should apologise when Heath had done the same thing to him and had never apologised for it. Something, anything...but Murphy kept quiet. "Maybe you'd rather feel it than look at it," Heath suggested. For a split second he saw Murphy's eyes flick down to his mouth, but when Murphy looked back at Heath it was with that infuriating detachment. Heath couldn't stand it, he wanted annoying Murphy back, he wanted fiery Murphy back, he wanted _his_ Murphy back. Well if talking wasn't gonna work, he'd have to try something else. Briefly Heath considered kissing Murphy, right here on the beach, but the language Heath knew how to speak best was violence. He shoved Murphy, egging him on, wanting the other man to snap and fight back. He wanted to see fire in Murphy's eyes. Murphy accepted the blow passively so Heath shoved him again.

"C'mon Murphy, hit me, I'll bet you're just dying to shut me up," Heath taunted. Suddenly there was a hand on Heath's chest and Heath was being pushed back from Murphy.

"Stop it Heath," Brax ordered, "what's gotten into you?" Heath didn't answer, he was too busy glaring. Brax turned to Murphy. "You alright?"

"Yeah," Murphy answered.

"Good," Brax said, "you go on then, I've got this." Heath struggled against Brax but he held him back as they watched Murphy walk off without another word. Brax looked at Heath now.

"What was that about?" his brother questioned.

"Nothing," Heath spat as he watched Murphy walk calmly away.

"Right," Brax said, though he didn't sound convinced. "Stay away from him till you've had a chance to cool off," Brax said, pushing Heath in the opposite direction to Murphy. Heath pulled his singlet straight.

"That won't be a problem," Heath told Brax, "I never want to see him again."

"That might be a little hard in a small town like this," Brax said with a hint of amusement.

"Shut up," Heath said before walking off.

Heath played it all over again in his head as he walked along the beach. Only once did Murphy's eyes flick down to Heath's mouth, and the mess he'd made there, but at least that was something. Heath was at a loss. Murphy drove him crazy with their constant bickering, but even crazier it seemed, when he ignored him. Heath didn't wanna be crazy, what the hell was he gonna do?

xxx

Yesterday, and today, it had taken everything in Liam to maintain his indifference towards Heath. This morning he'd only achieved that with Brax's help, but this fight would be worth it. It would get easier to ignore Heath and eventually he wouldn't have to try, his feelings would just be gone. He wondered how long Heath would keep this up for, if he knew anything about Heath it was that he could be persistent when he wanted to be and that he was not a good loser, he would try hard to win this battle, just to say he'd won. Heath seemed to lack that deeper level of thought or feeling that told you to stop when something had passed beyond a joke, that something was really serious and enough was enough. Liam persisted with the fight because he knew one simple fact; that Heath would never change, and if he stupidly let Heath creep back in, he'd have to face being hurt all over again. All this was good in theory but it was exhausting to fight what you wanted, even though you knew it would be better for you in the long run.

"Hey mate," Romeo said, leaning on the bar.

"Hey," Liam returned, a little absentmindedly.

"You ok?" Romeo seemed to be asking him that a lot lately. And then Liam had a solution for it. In the past Liam might've turned to pills in a situation like this but not this time. He would not let Heath do that to him, Heath wasn't worth it.

"Yeah," Liam said brightening, "I'm taking a week off. I'm gonna hit the road on my bike, head up the coast, maybe even write a few tunes." Liam made it up as he went, but it felt right. He needed to get away from here, and the thought of this trip had lifted a weight from him already.

After his shift Liam sorted out the time off with Brax and then he went home and packed. First thing in the morning, he would hit the road.


	14. Chapter 14

The road raced away beneath Liam, putting the much needed distance between him and The Bay. He hadn't bothered to say goodbye to anyone, no one would really miss him, he didn't belong there. Maybe he wouldn't go back, it would probably be better for everyone, a fresh start for him certainly would be. The further from Summer Bay he got the better he felt, or so he told himself, and not long into his trip his mind was occupied with new sights and the rush of riding this fast; it was a welcome relief. By the time he pulled into Palm Cove and found a motel he felt good. This town was not unlike Summer Bay, except for one very important difference that involved lots of tattoos and a bad attitude.

Liam went for a walk on the beach, and then while he ate in a quirky little cafe, he studied a map of the area. Just south of here on an unsealed road was marked 'Secret Beach', that sounded perfectly intriguing and deserted.

It was late afternoon when Liam parked his bike at the trail head and climbed down the steep steps to the beach. It was only a small beach but it was beautiful. It was surrounded by jagged rocks on both sides and behind it the cliff that the steps had wound their way down was surprisingly high. The colours were brilliant, from the blue water, to the white sand, even the green of the surrounding trees and the rich red-brown of the rocks. The sky was just beginning to darken. The surf was rough, it crashed up the beach, it reminded him of Heath. The rocks at the north end were steeper than at the south end and he noticed an opening in one. He headed towards it, with no idea whether the tide was coming in or going out, though he should probably be more aware of that kind of thing considering he lived on the coast. The sand was wet in front of the arch but he couldn't resist looking inside. He crouched down to look under the rock, and found to his delight it was a cave, easily big enough for him to stand in. He crawled inside, stood up and looked around, wondering what kind of critters he might find in here. Behind him a wave rushed in under another arch that faced the water. He took a quick step back to avoid his boots getting soaked.

Between the two arches and the splits in the rock, enough light flowed in to allow him to see the graffiti that previous visitors had left. It was the usual inspired stuff, Joel waz 'ere, Shazza has big tits, Damo & Lisa '11. Looking at it Liam didn't feel the need, but he could imagine Heath wanting to scratch his name into the rock. Before Liam knew what he really meant to do, he was searching for a rock. He found one, picked it up and scraped it on the cave wall. Another wave rushed in and this time it got him, soaking the bottom of his jeans. Liam dropped the rock, and realising that the tide was coming in, figured he better leave before he got trapped. He glanced once at the wall before he left, his eyes landing on what he'd written- 'LM was almost here'.

xxx

Twenty-four hours was enough time to cool off wasn't it? Sure it was, besides Heath needed to see Murphy. If he'd figured one thing out in the past day it was that avoiding Murphy was worse than fighting with him. At least when he fought with Murphy he felt a little better for getting at the other man, but avoiding him just made him play on Heath's mind, with nowhere to channel his frustration. But then again Murphy wouldn't even fight with Heath anymore... Heath checked the beach, the Surf Club, Angelo's, even the diner, with a growing sense of...something. Something that chilled him, something that made him anxious, kind of like something was getting away from him. Heath told himself he was being an idiot, and he almost shook the feeling, until he'd checked everywhere, and Murphy was nowhere to be found.

xxx

_Liam was at Heath's door, he wanted more pills, and he wanted them now. He bashed on the door, where was Heath?_

_Heath was telling Casey to go back to bed but Casey wouldn't go._

"Go home Murphy, I'm not giving you anything, you're high," _Heath told him._

_Liam was angry he was walking away, anywhere, it didn't matter. Then Casey was beside him. "See?" Casey said as though his point should be obvious. Liam had no idea what he was talking about. "No." "But he didn't sell them to you," Casey said, looking perplexed by Liam's lack of understanding. Suddenly Heath was with them. "Don't worry about it Case," Heath said with an easy-going smile on his bruised face, "his eyes are too blue anyway." Heath turned to Liam when he said the last part, their eyes met and..._

...Liam woke up. Heath, he'd been dreaming about Heath. As if it wasn't enough that he had to think about him all day, now he had to dream about him too. The last thing Heath had said, _his eyes are too blue_ , it was a strange thing to say, but it was familiar too, though Liam couldn't place it. But what did Casey say in the dream, it seemed more important... _but he didn't sell them to you._ It was true, Heath could've just made a quick buck and sent Liam on his merry way, but he didn't. He said no and then he followed Liam to make sure he was ok, and then he let Liam kiss him... Gahh, why was Liam doing this to himself? All that had been before...before Heath had said those hateful things... Liam thought back to the last time he'd seen Heath, when Heath had had the perfect opportunity to apologise or at least say something about how he felt, but instead he'd just picked another fight. Bloody hell, Liam had come away so he didn't have to think about Heath, but that was proving impossible, the thought of Heath had followed him. The only thing that could make this harder was if the real Heath did the same.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just so you know, Palm Cove is a town I made up, even though there is a place up near Cairns with the same name.


	15. Chapter 15

Last night's dream was playing on Liam's mind. Maybe a coastal town had been a dumb idea, maybe he should head inland, make a clean break. Liam walked by the water, going nowhere in particular. He passed a woman with a child, the boy reminded him of Ash, and Liam realised with a pang that Ash would be bigger now, it'd been a while since he'd seen him. Liam missed his son, though he doubted Ash missed him. He hadn't exactly been the most attentive father, and maybe that's why Heath's words stung so much; deep down Liam feared they were true. Liam hated feeling like this, Heath had a way of dragging him down and making him question himself. But there was more to his relationship with Heath than that, because as unlikely as it sounded, Heath had a way of chasing the darkness away too. There were moments when he was with Heath and he felt as if they were the only two people in the world. Liam had thought he was miserable when Heath was around, but being away from him was even worse. He realised now that he missed Heath, that Heath added a spark to his life that it needed.

xxx

The thought of Murphy was consuming Heath. No one should be allowed to make him think this much, let alone think about _them_ this much. Damn Murphy. Heath was gonna find him and fix this once and for all.

"Hey Brax, where's Murphy?" If anyone knew, Brax would, he was Murphy's boss after all.

"He took a few days off," Brax said unconcernedly, turning back to his work. They were in the storeroom, and apparently Brax was more interested in ticking stuff off a list than helping his own brother. It frustrated Heath, didn't Brax know how important this was?

"Obviously. Where'd he go?"

"I dunno, up the coast I think..." Brax answered without looking up from his clipboard.

"Did he mention anywhere specific?" Heath was gonna snap any second now if Brax couldn't bring himself to be a little more helpful.

"Maybe, what d' you care so much for anyway?" Half a smile was on Brax's face, but this so wasn't funny.

"I don't, I just wanna make sure he won't be back anytime soon," Heath huffed and started to walk away.

"Hey Heath," Brax said, calling his attention back, "he mighta said something about Palm Cove."

xxx

Heath jumped in his piggin' rig and headed off up the coast. She was built more for bush bashin' then cruising up the freeway, but she'd do the job. On the drive, Heath had plenty of time to think, but serious thinking wasn't really his forte. However, Heath did know this; he would not be able to think anything near a rational thought until he found Murphy and sorted this out. Frustratingly, his one-track-mind was completely fixated on that annoying idiot with the ridiculously blue eyes, who may or may not be a great kisser, who had a pretty mean right hook, who he wanted to strangle and snog at the same time, but who was ignoring him at the moment. Heath was determined to get a reaction from Murphy, however he had to go about it. Murphy not paying attention to him was maddening, but underneath the anger and frustration a feeling of lacking was settling on him and Heath knew Murphy was the answer to chasing it away. So he would track Murphy down and make something happen. Anything to push this one way or the other, so that at least he wouldn't have to wonder any more.

xxx

Liam was walking down the street, minding his own business when it happened. It helped lift his depressed mood.

"Oh my God, it's Liam Murphy!" was the cry he heard before four over-excited girls surrounded him. They loved his music, they'd been to his shows, could they get photos, could they get autographs, it'd be sooo awesome if they could. Of course they could, it was nice to know someone liked him. Liam posed with them for photos, which they took on their phones, and he signed whatever they could find, an old aquarium ticket, a shopping docket, a notepad, an arm. He used a Sharpie one of the girls produced from her bag. She always carried a Sharpie, just in case, you never knew who you might run into.

xxx

Heath's plan was half baked at best. He drove to the main street of town, parked and walked up the street hoping he'd run into Murphy. Only now did it occur to him that it mighta been a good idea to get Murphy's number off Brax, but then again, he couldn't really imagine asking Brax that question. Up ahead was a flock of giggling girls, a bloke was with them and the girls were clearly gaga over him. And then Heath realised who it was; it was Murphy. It took Heath a moment to register what he was doing; Murphy was signing autographs. It had never really occurred to Heath that Murphy was famous, so Heath stayed back and watched. Murphy had a smile on his face, a genuine one, Heath had never seen Murphy like this and he was intrigued to see this side of him. As Heath watched, all his anger drained away. It was a feeling of relief that flooded through him, making him realise he hadn't really expected to find Murphy, but he was so glad that he had. And there was something else too, something of a decidedly warm and fluffy persuasion that was welling up inside him. It was a little scary, but mostly it was nice. And in this moment at least, he knew it wasn't a question of pushing this one way or the other, there was only one way Heath wanted this to go. He waited until the adoring fans wandered off, chatting excitedly among themselves, before he approached the rock star.

"Sign me too?" Heath said, holding out his arm, he couldn't keep the smile off his face.

"Heath?" Murphy asked with disbelief, his smile vanishing as colour flooded his cheeks. Liam had been surprisingly relaxed only moments ago but now Heath was standing in front of him, a grin plastered across his face. How? Why? Oh God, he would have to show up when Liam was playing the part of adored celebrity. This would give Heath ammunition for who knew how long.

"I didn't come here to fight," Heath said quickly, taking in the wary look on Murphy's face. Liam welcomed Heath's words, he was glad they didn't have to fight, he didn't have the energy for that today. But it did present the problem that now neither of them knew what to do, all they ever did was fight. For the first time ever in their relationship, they were completely lost for words.


	16. Chapter 16

Looking at Heath, the memory of the beach Liam visited yesterday popped into his head, of how the waves had reminded him of Heath.

"Did you bring your surfboard?" Liam found himself asking. Heath's smile changed to something less soft, something more like the Heath Liam knew.

"Did you bring your guitar?" Liam finally allowed himself to smile too.

"I found a great little beach yesterday, I could show you if you like..."

"Yeah, alright, I parked down here." Heath led the way to his truck, which did indeed have a surfboard strapped to it. They climbed in and Heath started the engine before either of them had time to really consider how strange this was or what all of it might mean.

"Head south," Liam instructed so Heath did. Now they were on the road Liam's brain kicked back into gear, making him wonder about Heath's sudden appearance.

"How'd you find me anyway?" It was the easiest question to ask, the one with the least potential emotional upheaval attached to it.

"Brax mighta let something slip..." Heath said as he shifted back a gear, slowing for the beginning of the unsealed road. Ah yes, a rookie mistake to let slip a detail to a Braxton when you didn't want another Braxton to know.

"Take a right here," Liam pointed out when they came to a fork in the road. Liam was surprisingly comfortable being here with Heath, he felt more peaceful somehow and the irony wasn't lost on him. Neither was the fact that this new found peace could end with one wrong word. "It's just here," Liam said pointing to the tiny parking bay at the trail head. Heath pulled the truck off the road and killed the engine. From here it looked like they were in the middle of the scrub, they were surrounded by trees which blocked the ocean from view. But Liam knew that at the bottom of this steep climb the pretty little beach was there, waiting for them. Heath climbed out and surveyed the situation. He saw the steep stairs that didn't appear to end, and imagined carrying his board down there.

"Are you serious? Down there?"

"C'mon, it won't kill you," Liam said handing the board to Heath. Liam led the way to the bottom and as they emerged from the trees onto the beach he slipped his sunnies on to combat the glare of the sand.

Heath gazed out at the water, irresistibly drawn to the waves, he wanted to be out there. But he was torn, there was a lure just as irresistible right here on the beach too. In the end Heath decided he would hit the waves, at least out there he couldn't fuck things up with Murphy. Besides, it was unnatural to go to a beach and not get in the water. Heath looked at Murphy one last time before heading into the water. The rock star looked content decked out in his usual jacket, jeans and boots, it was something that would never fail to amuse Heath, no matter how many times he saw Murphy like this.

Liam sat in the sand and watched Heath surf, now this this beach was perfect. Liam couldn't help the surge of warmth he felt towards Heath, he had come after him after all. Liam hadn't thought that Heath would go to this much trouble for him. Unbidden, Heath's stinging words came back to Liam, playing over in his mind and he reminded himself that Heath was a hothead and that often he probably spoke before he thought, but that didn't mean he didn't believe in what he said, those things had to come from somewhere. Suddenly Liam felt shitty and undeserving of anyone's affection, it was that old circular problem of wanting to be wanted, and then getting it and feeling like he was unworthy, and not believing it was possible for anyone to want him in the first place. Of pushing it away and wanting it back in the same instant. And he was tired of the struggle, he didn't want to get his hopes up to have them dashed again. Liam watched Heath come gliding out of the water, looking as alluring as he had last time Liam watched him do this. Maybe even more so because this time he didn't tense at the sight of Liam and his contentment didn't drain away. Heath plonked down in the sand beside him and Liam felt better the instant he did.

"Good waves?" Murphy asked. He was wearing his sunnies, Heath wanted to see his eyes.

"Yeah," Heath replied, but he didn't wanna talk about surfing. Slowly Heath reached across and lifted the glasses from Murphy's face, revealing his blue eyes. The look in them was a guarded one, but Heath saw through it.

As Liam locked eyes with Heath he let the knowledge that Heath had followed him here fill him. It made him want to kiss Heath, so he turned away, gazing out at the ocean again, he didn't want Heath to see how he felt.

"What're you holding back for Murphy?" Heath asked, resting his hand on the other man's cheek and turning his face back towards his own. He knew Murphy wanted him, he'd lured him out here to this deserted beach after all, and besides that, he could see it in his eyes.

"I don't want to make you angry," Liam admitted, reaching up and covering Heath's hand with his own, he'd had about all the angst he could handle.

"But that's the best part," Heath smirked, and then he leaned in and captured Liam's mouth in a slow, sweet kiss. Liam had been wrong before, now this beach was perfect. Liam moved his mouth against Heath's, tasting his sea-salted lips. And feeling Heath's eagerness, Liam finally allowed himself to admit that he could have this. And for the first time since all this started they had time because this wasn't fuelled by anger, but something altogether different.

Liam had only ever kissed Heath's mouth but now he had the tantalizing opportunity to explore more of Heath, so Liam let go, stopped over thinking it all, and just did what he felt like. He kissed his way along Heath's jaw and down his neck. He let his hands roam across Heath's bare skin.

Heath hadn't been wrong, Murphy did want him. He tilted his head, giving Murphy better access to his neck, loving the way Murphy used his teeth as well as his lips. Fuck this felt good, Heath loved bringing out this side of Murphy.

Strange voices caught Liam's attention and he realised they were no longer alone. It was probably a good thing that they'd been interrupted, Liam didn't want to push this too far. So with the hope of things to come, he managed to pull away for now.

It was almost dark by the time they made it back to the truck. Heath drove Liam back to his motel. When Heath parked his truck at the door Liam turned to him, not wanting all this to end.

"You got anywhere to stay?" Liam asked. The question hung between them, there was so much more than a place to sleep riding on Heath's answer.


	17. Chapter 17

What was Murphy actually asking here? Kissing was one thing but a bed implied other things altogether. Heath's mind swirled, he had no idea how to answer and Heath was not used to being this unsure, it made him nervous, and nerves made him say silly, often inappropriate things.

"I wonder what those fangirls would think about you luring a bloke to your motel room? They'd probably be totally freaked out, it is pretty creepy." Ah shit, he hadn't meant to say that. Murphy threw him a filthy look and climbed out of the truck, slamming the door. Crap. Heath jumped out and followed him to the door.

"You were the one that followed me up here," Murphy said venomously as he turned the key in the lock and opened the door. "Was it just to be a jerk? To make fun of me? To tell me I'm a creep?" Liam threw the key on the table and turned on Heath who had followed him into the room.

"I didn't mean it," Heath said.

"Then why say it?" Liam said in exasperation.

"I dunno," Heath shrugged, giving no clue as to what he was thinking.

"God, you drive me crazy," Liam said with frustration as he pulled his boots off and hurled them at the floor. It felt like for every step forward they took, they took two back, but each retreat grew more maddening because the memories of the steps forward were getting better and better. Right now Liam wanted to strangle Heath.

"Likewise," Heath returned with a smirk. Damn Heath and his irresistibleness, but Liam was determined not to let that devil-may-care look weaken his resolve, even if his treacherous body was betraying him that this very moment.

"Get out Heath." Ignoring that completely, Heath closed the gap between them and pressed himself against the other man.

"C'mon Murphy, don't be like that, you know you want me." Heath attempted to kiss the stubborn rock star but he turned his face away.

"No, I don't," Murphy ground out.

"Well," Heath said reaching down and pressing his palm to the front of Murphy's jeans, "your cock says different." Liam couldn't help the lustful noise that escaped his lips. Heath popped open the button, slid the zipper down and plunged his hand down Murphy's pants before his nerves could get the better of him. He'd never done anything like this with a bloke, but Heath knew what he liked himself so he'd start with that and figure the rest of it out as he went. Murphy grew harder in his curled fingers as Heath slid them up down the silky skin. This was brilliant, Heath soon learned he could make Murphy make all sorts of wanton noises.

Liam's awareness was reduced to the hand around his cock and the building pleasure it caused. His mind spun with the sensuality of it all, he needed an anchor and he found in by sinking his teeth into the flesh above Heath's collarbone. Liam's hips bucked forward involuntarily, God, he was so close now.

"Heath, I can't-" Liam panted.

"So don't," Heath breathed into his ear. And that pushed Liam over the edge. Knowing Heath was so close and so attuned to him, he knew he could let go. Waves of pleasure rolled over him as he found his release. Liam rested his forehead on Heath's shoulder, his thoughts floated with blissful satisfaction and his breath came in pants. There was a moment when Liam could've been embarrassed by this but they were finally pushing past their boundaries and he was determined not to take another backwards step. He lifted his head and looked Heath in the eye.

Murphy's cheeks were flushed with colour, Heath loved seeing him undone like this and knowing he was the cause made it oh so sweet.

"How was that, huh?" Heath said victoriously, "still gonna try to tell me you don't want me?"

"No," Murphy said with conviction and then he captured Heath's mouth in a savage kiss. The look in his blue eyes when he pulled away, made Heath shiver with anticipation. "Now it's my turn," Murphy purred before shoving Heath hard in the chest and knocking him down onto the bed. Heath wondered if he'd bitten off more than he could chew. He just hoped Murphy wouldn't, he did seem to have a thing about teeth.

xxx

Sunlight peeked in between the curtains as Liam woke. He felt the warm body in the bed beside him, it was Heath. Heath Braxton was here in his bed, and damn it felt right. Liam propped himself up on his elbow to look down at the other man, admiring his handsome face. He decided he liked Heath when he was asleep, he was much less infuriating this way, though maybe not quite so much fun... Beside him, Heath stirred and opened his eyes, and thankfully, he didn't look horrified when he remembered who he was in bed with.

"Morning," Liam said before leaning in for a quick kiss.

"Morning," Heath mumbled back, with Murphy's lips pressed against his own.

"Sleep well?" Liam asked as he traced his fingers over Heath's tattoos.

"Yeah..." Heath said, sounding as though this surprised him. Heath glanced down to where Murphy was tracing his tatts and his mind was cast back to the night they'd had that wonderful fight.

"Do you really think my tatts are shit?"

"No, I think they're hot," Liam said, leaning down to press his lips to the ink on Heath's chest.

"Really?"

"Yeah, very macho," Murphy grinned, "and you're gonna need 'em when we go home." Shit, Heath hadn't really thought about that. How would they play this? What would his brothers say?

"Do you really think my music sucks?"

"I've never listened to it," Heath said distractedly, images of his brothers laughing faces still loomed in his mind.

"Prick!" Liam said, hitting him lightly.

"What? It's kind of new agey isn't it? I'm more of a classic rock fan." Heath gave Murphy the sweetest look he could muster.

"You're lucky you're so hot," Liam conceded, leaning down and kissing Heath's mouth again. God, he loved being here like this with Heath.

"So what are we gonna do now honey?" Liam asked Heath. A frown settled on Heath's face.

"For starters, never call me that again."

"Alright...jerk," Liam said, he'd remember this for later. Next time they fought, which of course they would, he could use sweet endearments as a weapon.

"That's better bitch," Heath grinned. "Let's stay for a few days. You've already got the time off and I can't hold down a job, remember?"

"Sounds good." Liam was glad of Heath's lack of responsibility, he himself had never been big on it until he'd hit rock bottom. He hoped Heath would never have to go there. "Is our epic fight playing on your mind?" Liam asked lightly, this was the second time Heath had bought it up this morning.

"Kind of, in a good way. Remember how I snogged you?"

"You mean how I snogged you?"

"Please, you were totally at my mercy."

"That's not quite how it happened. As I recall, you couldn't handle it because you were still sooking."

"Yeah because you wouldn't tell me about the pills, actually you still haven't."

"Oh my God. We're not seriously gonna go there again are we?"

"Not if you just tell me why." Liam was having possibly the best morning of his life and he didn't want it ruined.

"Fine," Liam submitted with a smirk and taking Heath's hand said, "come take a shower with me and I'll show you."


	18. Chapter 18

Heath Braxton was not prone to prolonged periods of sweetness and arriving back in Summer Bay made things more real somehow. With the familiarity of home, the old annoyance flared up again and the sweetness of the past few days faded like a dream. Right now he was pissed off at Murphy for...well, not so much for anything he'd done, more what he hadn't done. Heath had arrived back in town later than Murphy, his old truck was no match for the bike, and he'd expected Murphy to be waiting for him, but it appeared he'd just gone home. And Heath would not give him the satisfaction of chasing after him again, granted that's what he was doing right now, but last night he'd been irritated, and this morning he was ready for a fight. Heath walked into Angelo's, knowing Murphy had to work today.

"Heath! You're back! Why the hell haven't you been answering your phone?" Brax barked at him. This was the first time he'd seen Brax since he'd got home, Brax musta been off somewhere with that floosy cop last night.

"Nice to see you too Darryl," Heath said to his brother, and when he thought about it he hadn't bothered to charge his phone in the last few days, it hadn't seemed important.

"Someone burned down Jake's headquarters while you were gone," Brax told Heath, and yep, he was home. But Heath was glad someone had done it, it saved them the trouble.

"Good," he said distractedly, by then his attention was turned towards the bar where Murphy was chatting happily to Smith.

xxx

Liam's first day back at work seemed to drag on forever. Last night he'd headed straight home, knowing he needed a good night's sleep and that if he saw Heath again that probably wasn't going to happen. Waking up alone this morning was crappy, he missed Heath far more than he should have. Liam tried telling himself that he was a grown man and that they didn't need to be together every second of the day. And that this was real life where he had responsibilities, a job, but it was a slow day and in the end he was checking his watch every five minutes. That was what made Romeo's visit such a welcome distraction.

"Hey Romeo."

"Hey mate," Romeo said, taking a seat at the bar, "how was your break?"

"It was just what I needed."

"That's good. Manage to write any songs?"

"Na...I didn't seem to find the time," Liam said as his eyes wandered over to Heath, who'd just been accosted by Brax.

"So what did you do?"

"You know, this and that," Liam shrugged. "How's things with you?" Liam asked to deflect the attention from himself, not that that meant he didn't genuinely care.

"Yeah good. I managed to impress Dennis, he gave me a job working on the resort development." That was good news and Liam was glad for Romeo.

"That's great," Liam told his buddy.

"Yeah," Romeo agreed, "it means Indi and I can work together." Liam's mind wandered to his own, partner, lover, _boyfriend_? What the hell should he call Heath? None of those words seemed right. Annoyance, irritant or thorn-in-his-side seemed more appropriate. Suddenly the object of his thoughts appeared in front of him.

xxx

Was it just Romeo or did the vibe in here get weird all of a sudden? One minute he was having a perfectly normal conversation with Liam and then Liam gets this dreamy look on his face and Romeo turns to see Heath Braxton. Heath had walked right up to them and demanded Liam's attention, not that he seemed to need to...

"Murphy! There's something I need to tell you."

"Alright," Liam said. Heath glanced at Romeo, if a mere glance can hold that kind of hostility, before he spoke again.

"Not here, over there," he said, directing Liam's attention to the other end of the bar. Heath stalked off and Liam followed. Romeo couldn't draw his attention away now, this was utterly fascinating. They stopped at the other end of the bar and Heath leaned across and whispered something to Liam.

xxx

Heath needed something to focus Murphy's attention on him, something to remind him of the last few days. He leaned over the bar and spoke softly into Murphy's ear.

"I feel dirty. Wanna come over later and help me take a shower?" Murphy leaned back and the look he gave Heath satisfied him, his work here was done.

xxx

Romeo watched as Liam drifted back towards him, a strange, soft look on his face. It wasn't at all how Romeo was used to seeing Liam look after speaking to Heath, if he didn't know better he'd say Liam was infatuated. It was all too intriguing, Romeo couldn't help himself, he had to ask.

"What was that about?"

"Just a reminder of my time off," Liam said distractedly and by the secretive smile on his lips, Romeo knew he was right.

"Oh my God," Romeo exclaimed quietly, having the presence of mind to keep his voice down despite his shock. "You were with Heath weren't you? _This and that_ ," Romeo continued echoing Liam's earlier words, "yeah right." Liam didn't deny it, he just gave Romeo a 'you-got-me' look. Holy shit...

"Is it that obvious?" Liam asked with some concern.

"Only to everyone within a five mile radius," Romeo said, hoping Liam would understand he'd need to tone it down if he didn't want the whole Bay to know by dinner time. Not that it worried Romeo but Liam didn't seem to want everyone to know.

"Shit. You'll keep it under wraps for now yeah?" Liam said, "we don't want it to get back to Brax and Casey until we've had a chance to tell them. After that it doesn't matter."

"Alright," Romeo agreed. He had no intention of telling anyone, but even if he did no one would believe him, until they witnessed it for themselves, then there would be no doubt. This was possibly the strangest thing he had ever encountered, but if it made Liam this happy, he was all for it.

xxx

When Heath left Angelo's he headed home, he had a few hours to kill until Murphy finished his shift. Maybe he'd wax his surfboard or watch some old eps of Supernatural, the good ones, the ones before the angels showed up. He walked in the door to find Casey lounging in front of the TV, shouldn't he be at school or something?

"What's the matter with you?" Heath asked harshly, when he saw Casey's sullen face, he'd already copped shit off Brax for being AWOL.

"Nothing," Casey said sulkily and then Heath felt bad for taking his frustration at Brax out on Casey. He plonked down beside him.

"Did you miss me?" Heath asked jokingly, throwing an arm around his little brother, in an attempt to clear the air between them.

"No," Casey said irritably, pushing Heath away and sooking off to his room. Ah well, stuff him, Heath wasn't gonna let Casey bring his good mood down. For the first time in a long time he was actually happy. He hoped that Brax and Casey would be ok with this whole Murphy thing, not that he'd stop seeing Murphy if they didn't approve, but their acceptance would make his life much easier. Unfortunately however, Heath was aware that in the lives of the Braxton's easy was rarely the case.

xxx

Liam finished his shift and headed outside, wondering where he'd find Heath at this time of the day. Right here, it seemed, as Liam spotted him waiting by the door.

"What're you doing here?" Liam asked, it was probably a silly question, but maybe he just wanted to hear the answer.

"I'm here to walk you home," Heath said. Liam was pretty sure he could make it there on his own, not that he wasn't glad of Heath's company, it was just strange.

"If you insist," Liam said.

"I do," Heath replied and they fell into step beside each other.

"How was your day?" Liam asked; this was all a bit surreal. Could they really stroll through the park and have a civil conversation?

"Not as good as yours I'd say. How's Smith?" And there it was. Not quite record time for them, they'd managed a couple of sentences before an argument loomed, but close.

"You were jealous today..." Liam speculated, it was the only explanation for Heath's strange behaviour.

"Hardly," Heath said.

"Yes, you were," Liam insisted, stopping so he could study Heath's face. "You don't need to worry, I have no interest in other men, I'm not homosexual, I'm Heathsexual." Heath gave him a justifiably weird look. "Ok, so that sounded better in my head," Liam admitted, "but you get the point, I've eyes only for you darling." Liam demonstrated his point by pressing himself against Heath and kissing his lips tenderly.

"Get off me," Heath said, panicking a little at the sappy territory they were straying into, he got the point.

"You don't mean that," Liam purred, sliding his arms around Heath's waist to prevent him escaping, and pressing another kiss to his stubborn mouth. Heath put up a token resistance but soon enough he returned Liam's kiss and between further kisses he said managed to ask, "what if...someone...sees?"

"You're right," Liam conceded, taking a difficult step back from Heath, "we should tell Brax and Casey first." Heath gulped. "Let's do it now," Liam suggested, adding with a smirk, "then we can snog whenever we like." Heath liked the sound of that.

"Time to face the music then I guess," Heath said.

"Guess so," Liam replied. Romeo had taken it pretty well, hopefully Heath's brothers would too.


	19. Chapter 19

"Look, it'll be alright," Liam assured Heath who looked like he was about to have a stroke, "Romeo was fine with it."

"You told Smith?"

"No, he guessed," Liam admitted, "said it was obvious to everyone within a five mile radius..." The look on Heath's face was somewhere between disgust and outrage. "You sure know how to make a bloke feel special," Liam said coyly, resting his hand on Heath's chest and giving him his most adorable look.

"Yeah well, you know I don't like this mushy crap," Heath said warily.

"Really? I hadn't noticed," Liam said playfully before kissing Heath's face. And that Heath let himself be kissed, proved he was all talk. "So how do you want to do this?" Liam asked. Brax and Casey were Heath's brothers after all.

"I dunno," Heath said, "I'd rather not think about it, let's just do it."

"Alright," Liam smirked, that was Heath to a tee. They headed over to the Braxton's place, Liam was surprisingly at ease, probably because Heath was freaking out enough for both of them. When they got to the front door Heath stopped, looking kind of lost.

"You don't have to knock," Liam said, "it's your house too." It was an attempt to calm Heath with humour but it just seemed to rile Heath up instead.

"I know that," Heath said with irritation. This was going to be difficult enough without Heath going in there angry, so Liam grasped Heath's arms and looked into his eyes, wanting Heath to know he was here for him.

"It's ok Heath," Liam told him gently, "it's just your brothers in there. Just Brax and Casey, the same people you've known all your life, the same people who love you. And you're still you, this won't change anything."

"You really think so?" Heath asked hopefully.

"I do," Liam said with certainty, moving his hands to cup Heath's face and pressing a quick kiss to his mouth. When he felt Heath relax a little, Liam pulled away.

"Ok," Heath said, appearing much calmer now. He took a deep breath and reached for the door handle, and his other hand reached back for Liam as he pushed the door open, so Liam took it, knowing in that moment that Heath was serious about this, about him, about _them_...and armed with that knowledge Liam could face anything.

They walked in to find Brax sitting at the table. He turned when he heard them and Heath saw his eyes flick down to where he held Liam's hand in his own. Heath had a moment of wanting to pull it away but then he felt Liam's fingers tighten around his and the thought dissolved.

"Is Casey here?" Heath asked, his voice sounding much calmer than he felt.

"Yeah," Brax said and then he stood and called to Casey. Soon enough Casey appeared in the room and then there was nothing left to wait for.

"There's something I wanna tell you two..." Heath began.

"Ya reckon!" Casey exclaimed before he thought, now that he'd decided his eyes weren't playing tricks on him. His brother, as in his brother Heath, as in his brother Heath who was excessively butch and who hated Liam Murphy with a passion, was standing in front of him, _holding hands_ with that very same Liam Murphy. Maybe the apocalypse was upon them and for the moment that thought was a welcome distraction from his own worries. Heath threw Casey a reproachful look and continued. Or at least he meant to continue but suddenly every word he knew had flown out of his head. So Heath stood there silently looking at his brother's expectant faces.

"What Heath wants to say..." Liam intervened for him, and Heath felt him shift a little so he was pressed closer to Heath's side and Heath was grateful, "or rather, what we want to tell you is that our relationship has changed," Liam let a little smile curl his lips as he turned to look at Heath fondly. "You could say we don't hate each other quite as much as we used to..." It was perfect, Murphy had phrased it just right, he'd gotten the point across without making them sound like complete sissies.

"I'd say that's probably a slight understatement," Brax said, and for a moment his eyes met Liam's and Liam knew that this would be ok, that Brax had already accepted this. And with Brax's acceptance, Casey's would follow.

"Maybe a little..." Liam said to Brax, but what he really meant was 'thank-you for accepting this and try not to stir Heath up too much about it, he's a little touchy at the moment', he hoped Brax would understand that. "You'll be alright if I go home?" Liam turned to Heath and asked, not wanting to desert him, but thinking that he could probably do with some alone time with his brothers. Heath nodded. Liam leaned in and kissed Heath on the mouth, just to make sure they'd left no doubt that they meant what they'd said. Liam had intended it to be nothing more than a peck, but when his lips found Heath's...well things don't always go as planned.

"I'm going to bed, I hope I don't have nightmares," Liam heard Casey say and he pulled away.

"Thanks," Heath whispered as his lips parted from Liam's. Liam gave him a smirk and left, before this really did get out of hand.

Heath watched his brothers warily, now that Murphy was gone they'd say what they really thought. The room was silent, and when Heath could stand it no longer he turned to his little brother, Casey's reaction was the one that he dreaded least.

"Case?"

"I'm serious," Casey shrugged, "I really hope I don't have nightmares," and then he turned and went to bed. Shit, that seemed way too easy, but maybe not, because it did mean that now Heath was alone with Brax. Slowly, Heath turned his gaze on his big brother.

"It's about time."

"What?" Heath said.

"The suspense was killing me," Brax said almost managing to keep a straight face, but Heath could see the laughter in his eyes.

"You knew?" Heath said incredulously, all this worrying had been for nothing.

"Yeah," Brax said, letting himself smile, "you think I don't know when my little brother's in love?" Love? Whoa, Brax needed to back up a step or ten...

"In love?" Heath almost choked on the words. He could admit he liked fooling around with Murphy, but love was another thing entirely.

"Don't look so shocked," Brax grinned, "you'd have hardly felt the need to tell me and Casey about this if you weren't serious about him." Heath's mind was racing, he had no words for this. "So who tops?" Was Brax's next question. Had Heath heard that right? The look on Brax's face said he expected an answer, and he did look pretty amused. Heath may have panicked a little and he blurted out the truth.

"No one. We haven't actually done that yet." Brax's grin widened.

"Well I'll bet you're in for a treat then." It took a moment for the meaning of Brax's words to sink in.

"As if," Heath said defensively, "there's no way I'm taking it from that bitch." At that Brax lost it altogether, and there it was, Heath had known he'd get laughed at because of this.

"How long _have_ you known?" Heath asked, so Brax would have to answer. At least if he was talking, he wouldn't be laughing.

"Since the night I came around here to stop you selling him anything and found you with a split lip and that dopey look on your face."

"It _was_ a good punch," Heath admitted, his hand wandering to his mouth with the memory.

"Yeah that's the one," Brax chuckled, "he really has done a number on you hasn't he?" And this time when Brax smiled at Heath there was much less of the mocking in it.

"Huh?" Heath said, he'd only half been paying attention...

"Like I said," Brax grinned, "I'll bet you're in for a treat..."


	20. Chapter 20

Liam had had a brief phone conversation with Heath last night, just to make sure he hadn't hit anyone or been disowned by his brothers, and finding that all was well they'd agreed to meet at the beach this morning. Heath was already out in the surf when Liam arrived so Liam had sat down to watch. He envied Heath the opportunity to be out there, of course he had his music, but now that he didn't play shows anymore it didn't provide quite the abandon he imagined surfing did.

Heath finished up his session and headed into shore. Murphy was waiting for him, sitting on the sand decked out in his usual get up. The sun was shining and the surf was great, and with the weight of telling Brax and Casey about himself and Murphy off his shoulders, Heath felt good.

"How can you sit there on a day like today?" It was beyond Heath how anyone could go to the beach and not get in the water.

"I like to watch," Liam said, trying and failing to keep a straight face.

"No seriously Murphy," Heath said, sitting down next to the other man, "don't ya like surfing?"

"I've never tried it." The thought barely computed with Heath, so much of his life was about surfing. He loved it and didn't know how Murphy could live without it.

"I could teach you," Heath offered, realising as he said it that it was something he'd like to do, it would be something he could share with Murphy.

"Thanks, but maybe you better teach me to swim first."

"You're fucking kidding aren't ya? What kind of a freak can't swim!"

"Lovely," Liam said dryly, "I open up to you, tell you my shameful secret and you call me a freak..."

"Sorry. It's just hard to imagine, we grew up in the water."

"Not all of us were so lucky," Liam said. Heath was thrown for a moment, he'd never considered his upbringing as overly lucky. It was better than most of the other River Boys but that wasn't saying much. It made him wonder about how Murphy had grown up. With Heath's silence this conversation was straying towards awkward so Liam asked a question to change the subject. "So how were things with Brax after I left?"

"He laughed at me," Heath said with dismay.

"Well that's better than disowning you," Liam said jokingly, but judging by the horror stuck look on his face, Heath didn't find it funny. Liam knew he shouldn't be stirring Heath up at a time like this, and he wouldn't have been if he'd had any doubt about Brax's acceptance of their situation. "I'm only joking," Liam said, bumping his shoulder against Heath's, "Brax would never do that to you." Heath still looked worried so Liam changed the subject again to get Heath's mind off it.

"You wanna meet me for lunch?" he asked, there was no need for them to hide now.

"Alright," Heath agreed, somewhat reluctantly, "we may as well get it out there..."

"That's the spirit," Liam said sarcastically.

"What?"

"Nothing," Liam replied. "Anyway...this could be fun you know. There's one very important person we need to reveal this to..."

"Bianca," they said in unison, as they exchanged matching evil grins. Fuck yeah, this was gonna be awesome…

xxx

Once Bianca had had a chance to cool down and look at the last dinner she'd had with Heath objectively, she realised she may have been a little hasty. She knew how much Liam and Heath hated each other and the thought occurred to her that maybe Liam had made it up, and if that was the case, she owed Heath an apology. She headed off in search of Heath, not sure where she'd find him, and come to think of it she hadn't even seen Heath around in the past few days. It was outside the Surf Club that she found him, looking positively gorgeous with that whole bad boy thing goin' on. Yeah, he was definitely worth an apology, she decided as she approached him.

"Heath, how have you been?"

"Great," Heath replied happily. God, would it kill him to be a little more upset over their disastrous dinner? "I've been up the coast for a break. We had an awesome time." We?

"Oh yeah, who'd you go with?" It better not be that-

"Speak of the devil," Heath said with a smile, but it wasn't his usual grin and she turned to see Liam heading towards them.

"Hey Bianca," Liam called cheerfully enough, but his expression changed completely when he turned his gaze on Heath. What was going on here?

"Hi Liam," she returned uncertainly, finding the comfortable way he approached herself and Heath strange.

"I was just telling Bianca about our time away," Heath told Liam. What the hell?

"I hope you didn't give her too many details darling," Liam said.

"You know I don't kiss and tell babe," Heath replied. Darling? Babe? Kiss? Was she hearing this right? Well if her ears were deceiving her, her eyes must be too, because Heath had just reached down and firmly planted his hand on Liam's arse. Holy muthafucking muthafuckers! They'd had a dirty weekend away...

"He...you... _him_?" Bianca stuttered, looking back and forward between them. "What about me?"

"Looks like you missed out," Heath grinned at her with satisfaction.

"C'mon Heath," Liam said, his tone implying sympathy, but the look in his eyes was far from sympathetic. "Don't be like that, really we should be thanking her." And then he leaned in and kissed Heath. Kissed him on the _mouth_. Wah, they were her mouths to kiss! They shouldn't be kissing each other! When they'd finished with that display, which was either the hottest or worst thing Bianca had ever seen, Liam looked at her again. "Thanks Bianca. We may never have found each other without you." And then Liam looked back at Heath. Bianca knew that look, Liam had looked at her in a similar way not that long ago, but with nowhere near the intensity he gave Heath. They weren't messing around, unbelievably they were in love, she wondered if they were aware of how far they'd fallen. And it was in that moment that Bianca grasped how monumentally she'd fucked up. Not only had she failed to snag either of the hottest guys in the Bay, but she may have had a hand in helping them get together, effectively taking both of them off the market in one fell swoop. This was a fucking disaster!

"Don't feel bad Bianca, I'm happy now," Heath said, "Murphy's far better for me than you ever were." Ouch.

"Aw Heath," Liam crooned, taking Heath's face in his hands and kissing him lovingly. Ok, now they were just rubbing her face in it, horrible bastards.

"Well," she said confidently, determined not to let them see how badly this was getting to her, "I have to go, I'm meeting..." Shit she should've thought this lie out a little better, she scanned the people sitting at the tables outside the Surf Club, looking for anyone she knew. She spotted Dr Walker. "...Sid for lunch."

"See ya round Bianca," Heath said cheerfully as Liam threw an arm around him.

"Have a nice lunch with Sid," Liam called after her, unable to contain his laughter as Bianca stalked off. And when she pulled out a chair and actually sat down with Sid, both Liam and Heath lost it altogether, the poor doctor had no clue about what was going on.

"That was brilliant," Liam said once he'd gotten his laughter under control.

"Yeah perfect," Heath agreed when he'd done the same, "did you see her face?"

"Yeah, I thought she was gonna shit a brick and drop a whole litter of kittens at the same time." And that set them off laughing all over again. Once they'd managed to get their second bout of laughter under control, an oddly serious look came onto Heath's face.

"I meant it you know," Heath said.

"Meant what?"

"That you're the best thing that's happened to me."

"Oh Heath..." was all Liam could manage to say. He knew how hard it was for Heath to say something like that. Liam showed his understanding the best way he knew how; with a smouldering kiss. And what they didn't see was the way Bianca scowled at them or the way Sid's eyebrows nearly flew off his face when he followed Bianca's gaze and saw them completely wrapped up in each other.

"Wanna take this elsewhere?" Liam managed to say.

"Do I ever..."

xxx

55 Saxon Avenue was suitably empty when Heath and Liam rocked up looking for some 'alone' time.

"You wear too many clothes," Heath complained against Murphy's mouth as he struggled to rid the other man of them, whilst kissing him and steering them towards his bedroom.

"And you don't wear enough, how am I supposed to think straight when you're around?"

"You're not. Now shut up," Heath said, not giving a damn about anything except revealing some skin. He pulled Murphy's black shirt off before pushing him onto the bed and climbing on top of him.

"See? Look how pasty it makes you," Heath said, not about to admit that he liked Murphy's milky skin or that he was glad he was the only one who got to see so much of it. Heath was already way past his quota of sappiness for the day.

"Shut up," Liam said, echoing Heath's earlier words, he'd had enough of talking. Heath complied by leaning down and kissing Liam fiercely. Liam reached for the bottom of Heath's singlet and slid it up the smooth skin of his back and Heath raised himself up enough to allow Liam to pull it off. Liam had a moment to admire Heath before Heath slammed their mouths together again. And in that moment he thought of how justified Bianca's reaction was, she'd made a huge mistake letting Heath get away and Liam was determined never to take Heath for granted the way she had. But thoughts of Bianca were gone as quickly as they came, chased away as Heath ran his hand down Liam's bare skin, moving it lower until his fingertips slid under the waistband of Liam's jeans, leaving Liam with nothing but thoughts of how good this all felt. Heath's fingers worked their way across Liam's abdomen towards his fly. God, it was such a small gesture but the light contact with his sensitive skin was so intimate and promised so much. Heath pulled his mouth from Liam's and looked down at his rock star, and looking in those blue eyes he saw that Liam wanted him, like no one else ever had, and Heath was ready for more. Maybe loving this man wasn't quite the crisis Heath had first considered it to be. He'd been a little hesitant about certain things but this was Murphy, his Murphy, and the way he was looking up at Heath made Heath's nerves disappear, no one had ever made him feel so right. As Heath pressed his palm against Liam's cock he leaned down and spoke huskily into Liam's ear.

"I wanna use my mouth..."

"So do it..." Liam said through the desire, with what he hoped was enough of the old challenging tone to remind Heath that this was still just them and a natural part of their relationship, but he made sure to soften it too, so that Heath would know he understood this was a big step for him. And Liam must've got it right, because Heath didn't waste any time doing exactly what he said he wanted to.

xxx

Liam was only slightly late, if half an hour is slight, getting back to work from 'lunch'.

"It gives me the heebie-jeebies seeing that cop in here all the time," Heath said and Liam turned to see Charlie had just walked in.

"Why?" Liam smirked, "because you're so badass?"

"Well yeah," Heath agreed matter-of-factly, still eyeing Charlie suspiciously.

"Are they on-again or off-again at the moment?"

"Off...I think," Heath answered, it was so hard to keep up with. Watching Brax and Charlie, Liam thought Heath was right, they didn't look too happy with each other, and this whole thing with the fire had to add tension to their already difficult relationship. The cops suspected the Braxton's had something to do with it, they denied it and Liam believed them, but he was glad Heath had followed him up the coast, it was a solid alibi if the cops did come asking. It appeared Charlie had said what she came to say. She turned and left, and Brax watched her go with a blank face, Liam had no idea what he was thinking. That was until he turned his attention towards the pair of them and scowled, apparently Brax hadn't failed to notice Liam's extended lunch break.

"I'm only so understanding," Brax told them as he came to stand with them at the other end of the bar. "You better not be late for work again," he said severely, directing his words at Liam. "And you," he told Heath, equally as pissed off, "leave my staff alone during work hours." They both managed to hold appropriately serious expressions until Brax turned away.

"He's right you know," Liam said dreamily, "we can't let this happen again."

"You can't," Heath smirked, "I'm not the one that's gonna get fired."

"Well that's nice," Liam said, whipping Heath with a tea towel before he turned back to cleaning the bar.

"Hey!" Heath said, as he attempted to jump back out of range.

"Oi! What did I just tell you two?!" A very unimpressed Brax said.

"Sorry Brax," Liam said genuinely, he hadn't meant to be disrespectful.

"Yeah sorry Darryl," Heath said sarcastically as he headed for the door. The look he threw Liam as he left promised that this wasn't over, and Liam hoped it never would be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some of the upcoming events are based on plot points from the show. They are only loosely based on the events and anything that doesn't fit in with cannon is most likely intentional. I may have taken liberties with some of the timelines too. Thanks for reading.


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Massive spoilers for the movie Tombstone ahead. If you haven't seen it, why the hell not?! Sorry, what I meant to say was I highly recommend doing so before you read on...

"Look what I've got," Murphy said enthusiastically, waving a DVD in Heath's face.

"What're you doin' here?" Heath was a little surprised to see him, he thought Murphy was working today. Liam chose to ignore Heath's rudeness and answered the question civilly.

"Brax gave me the morning off. We've got to go over the books later and we'll probably be working late so I figured seeing how I've got the time off we could watch a movie together." Liam finished by waving the DVD in Heath's face again, and ok, maybe he waved it too close on purpose, just to be irritating.

"What is it?" Heath said, clamping his hand around Murphy's wrist and pushing his arm back so he could actually see what the idiot was shoving in his face.

"Tombstone. Huh, it is a real movie."

"Yeah," Murphy said as though that should be obvious.

"Well I wasn't sure," Heath said defensively, "you _were_ totally high when you were raving on about it."

"I was not _totally high_ ," Liam shot back, "I was slightly elevated."

"Whatever," Heath said, not buying a word of it, he knew high when he saw it. "Chuck it on then," Heath instructed and Liam didn't need to be told twice. He put the disc in the player and took a seat beside Heath on the lounge.

"Prepare yourself for awesomeness," Murphy declared, squirming around to make himself comfortable, which involved, Heath appreciated, pressing himself as close to Heath as he could.

"It's kinda weird that you're into Westerns..." Heath commented as the disc loaded.

"I grew up watching them," Liam shrugged but it got him to wondering. "What kind of movies did you watch as a kid?"

"Same as everyone else I guess," Heath said, "Disney mostly." The thought appealed to Liam, little Heath and little Brax and baby Casey watching Cinderella or Snow White together on a rainy day...

"Get that look off your face, every kid grows up on Disney," Heath defended, "Robin Hood, The Jungle Book and The Sword in the Stone are the best ones..." Heath finished, so Murphy would understand the mushy love stories weren't his favourites.

"I love The Little Mermaid."

"Really?" Heath said, not sure if Murphy was taking the piss or not.

"Yeah Ariel's hot. I don't care if you're a chick or a dude or which way you swing, everyone loves Ariel."

"That's true," Heath agreed, he had a thing for Ariel too. Liam hit play and the familiar voice over began. The opening scene with the Mexican wedding played out and Heath was hooked, right from the first moments this movie was captivating. Enter the Earps, meeting at the train station to start their new life in Tombstone. Is there anything better than a story about brothers? Liam wondered.

"It's a movie about brothers," Heath said appreciatively, "three of 'em."

"Uh-huh," Liam said, pleased Heath had noticed. It wasn't strictly true but 'Wyatt Earp' was a movie for another day. "Morgan's like Casey, the little cute one..." Liam said. Heath looked at him suspiciously.

"Did you just call Casey cute?"

"I didn't mean it like that you idiot. I meant like this," Liam said, reaching over and pinching Heath's cheek.

"Ow," Heath complained as he pushed Liam's hand away and rubbed his face.

"Well don't say dumb stuff," Liam told him before snuggling in closer and turning his attention back to the movie.

"So I guess that makes me Wyatt," Heath said, "he's the middle brother and the coolest one."

"No, Brax is more like Wyatt," Liam said, just to stir Heath up, "he's kinda like the boss of the family. So I guess that makes you Virgil..."

"No way," Heath argued, "I'm not the old cranky one, that sounds way more like Brax, now shut up so I can watch." They were up to the bit where Wyatt acquires a quarter interest at the Oriental. This was where Doc and Wyatt met up again.

"And that makes me Doc," Liam said happily, watching his fav character and Wyatt picking up their epic friendship where they'd left off. "He and Wyatt are totally tight." Heath glanced at Murphy warily, that right there sounded like they were about to stray into sappiness.

"No, you're more like that blonde chick Wyatt kicks around with," Heath said to get away from the looming sentimentality.

"Mattie? I bloody hope not, Wyatt treats her like a piece of shit and then runs off with someone else."

"Shoosh, stop giving the story away," Heath said, not bothering to tell Murphy that he was right, because that would come dangerously close to wandering into lovey-dovey territory. Liam shooshed and they watched on in silence, Heath recognising the scene with Johnny and Doc talking in Latin. It was a really cool scene, packed with tension, and funny too. It gave Heath an idea, which he decided not to share with Murphy. They continued to watch on happily until the storm started to brew and Morgan was playing pool. Crap, maybe Liam should have thought his earlier comment through a little more. The Cowboys called down the thunder and Morgan slumped on the pool table, a bullet buried in his back. It got Liam every time, Morgan was the one that least deserved this fate, he'd never done the wrong thing, he'd only ever looked out for his brothers. Heath watched the scene unfold, the horror and hopeless of it, Wyatt, covered in his little brother's blood, clutching at his brother's bloody hand, as the doctor gave up trying to remove the bullet, Wyatt knowing there was nothing he could do. And then Morgan died. Liam glanced at Heath who looked horrified, yeah, maybe this wasn't the best movie for them to watch.

"They got their little brother killed..." Heath said faintly and this wasn't just a movie. These were real people, this had actually happened.

"Keep watching," Liam said, "it turns out alright." Heath doubted that, Casey was dead and Brax was shot, that just left him...at least he had his best mate Doc. They settled back into watching as Wyatt, with the help of Doc, took his revenge on the scum that had killed his brother. But now Doc was sick, too sick to help Wyatt when he needed it the most. Liam heard the door open, crap this was the best bit!

"Hey fellas, whatcha's watchin'?" Came Brax's voice. Liam grabbed for the remote to pause the movie before this part was ruined for Heath.

"Shoosh Brax!" Heath said urgently, without moving his eyes from the screen. Wyatt was about to have his final show down with Johnny Ringo. Jesus, Brax had forgotten they were living in the Twilight Zone now, so he backed off before Heath's head started to spin or Liam sprouted horns.

"It's Doc!" Heath exclaimed, what a bloody legend that man was.

"See, told ya this was awesome," Liam couldn't help saying.

"Shut up," Heath said, elbowing Murphy to emphasize his point, he still had to see how this showdown went. Doc won of course and the movie ended as good as it could, the Cowboys broken forever and Wyatt got the girl. The last they saw of Doc was when Wyatt visited him for the final time, when the gambler was on his deathbed and Wyatt, just this once, let himself be sappy. Hmmm, maybe it _was_ ok...every now and then.

"Best movie ever," Murphy declared as the credits rolled.

"It was pretty good," Heath agreed. Liam was pleased, at least this was one thing they didn't have to fight about.

"I've been there you know," Liam told Heath, a little over-excited because he'd just watched the movie, "to Tombstone. To the OK Corral, the Birdcage Theatre, the Crystal Palace, Boot Hill... the Clantons and the McLaurys are buried there you know, and there's a gift shop too, which is pretty random for a cemetery. The gunfight was actually in a little lot behind the corral but "The Gunfight at the Lot Behind the OK Corral" doesn't sound as cool. They do re-enactments there a few times a day and actors dressed up as the Earps and Doc and the Cowboys kick around town all day, playing their parts and drinking at Big Nose Kate's Saloon with tourists. I think the guy who plays Wyatt actually believes he is Wyatt. The whole town is obsessed with this movie, it plays on a constant loop in all the saloons and shops. I remember this one lady who worked in the gift shop in the basement of the Birdcage, there are bullet holes everywhere in the walls there, anyway this one lady looked at me with this kinda crazy look in her eye and said "it's a good movie, but five times a day every day gets a bit much you know?" I didn't think it would be a chore to watch Tombstone over and over but she did look pretty frazzled. And I got my photo taken at the place where Morgan died. It's a souvenir shop now but they have this sign hanging from the ceiling that marks the spot, I didn't know whether to smile or not..."And Liam stopped there, because Heath was looking at him kinda strange and he realised he'd been rambling.

"You've been to America..." Those kinds of things always seemed so far out of reach to Heath.

"Yeah," Liam answered, "a few years ago, just to see the sights. Tombstone's in Arizona, about 30 miles north of the Mexican border." Wow, Heath couldn't imagine what it'd be like to go places like that, he'd never even been out of NSW, unless you count drug runs to Melbourne which he didn't because they were usually done under the cover of darkness and left no time for sightseeing.

"I've never been anywhere," Heath said. "Mum and Dad took us to the zoo in Sydney once when Casey was really little, and me and Brax fought the whole time and Dad swore he'd never take us anywhere again. He never did..." For a moment Heath looked lost in the memory and Liam was unsure about whether it was a fond remembrance or a regretful one. He knew Heath would tell him more if he wanted to, so rather than pry Liam directed the conversation in a lighter direction.

"Where would you like to go?"

"I dunno," Heath shrugged, "anywhere, just somewhere different."

"Liam, you ready to go?" Brax asked, putting an end to their conversation.

"Yeah," Liam told him, but his mind was a million miles away, thinking of all the places he could show Heath one day.

"Alright, well let's go," Brax said, heading for the door, and meaning for Liam to follow. Liam stood up and Heath did too.

"I'll see you later yeah?" Liam said, hoping he wouldn't have to work too late.

"If you're lucky," Heath said with a smirk. Damn, how was Liam supposed to walk away when Heath looked this irresistible?

"C'mon," Brax said impatiently and somehow Liam managed to drag himself away.

xxx

Liam and Brax were working even later than they had expected, they really needed to get the books balanced for end of quarter. They sat at a booth at Angelo's, pouring over the numbers, hoping to get this done as soon as possible, but someone was making it difficult. Apparently luck was on Liam's side. Heath was sitting at a table, rocking back on his chair, throwing peanuts into a cup. The ticking noise as the peanuts hit the table was wearing thin.

"Hey Murph, do you reckon I should get another tatt?"

"I dunno Heath," Liam said vaguely, trying his best to make the numbers in this column play fair. Brax threw Heath a cranky look before turning his attention back to the books.

"Does the wine inventory match?" he asked Liam.

"Umm.." Liam said, flipping back through the pages to find the list he'd made, he was finding it hard to focus. It was when the nuts started to fly that Brax snapped; a deliberately thrown peanut had just landed on their table.

"For Christ's sake Heath! Piss off would ya! We need to get this done." Heath looked outraged and turned to Liam for support.

"I wouldn't have said it quite like that," Liam said with an apologetic smile, "but we do need to get this done sugar." Liam hoped the sweet name, especially in front of Brax, would be enough to scare Heath off.

"Fine," Heath huffed, eyeing both of them as though they were conspiring against him, which admittedly, they kinda were. He threw Brax a defiant look as he approached them with determination and then he leaned down and snogged Liam. Liam didn't complain.

"Righto, that's enough of that, ya pair of poofs," Brax huffed and after their previous 'incident' Liam figured he better annoy Brax too much. He pulled away from Heath and watched as the younger Braxton turned to the elder one with a shit-stirring look.

"I'd rather be a poof than a pig fucker," Heath declared. For a moment it hung between the brothers and Liam waited, unsure how Brax would react. Brax appeared to be unsure himself. Anger flashed across his face but them he seemed to think better of it and he took a deep breath before levelling his gaze at Heath.

"Really?" Brax said, it was a question, he was asking Heath if he really wanted to go there, if he really wanted to have this fight. Heath seemed to think better of it too and he glanced at Liam who shrugged, what else could he do?

"Fine," Heath conceded and then he turned and left. Liam watched him appreciatively as he walked away.

"I dunno how you put up with him..." Brax sighed as he riffled through some papers.

"He's not always like that," Liam said distractedly, "there's a side to him you don't see..."

"Thank God..." Brax muttered. Liam gave Brax a wry smile.

"He can be sweet you know..."

"I don't wanna hear it," Brax said firmly, he did not need a run down on his brother's hot mouth or tight arse. "Let's just get this done alright."

"Yeah alright," Liam agreed. The sooner they were done here the sooner he'd get to see Heath again.


	22. Chapter 22

"Hey, you can't take that," Liam told Heath when he caught him lifting money from the till. "It took us most of the night to balance those books." Not to mention that Angelo's wasn't doing so well.

"So rebalance them," Heath said as he tucked the notes into his pocket.

"What'd you need it for anyway?"

"I'm getting a new tatt." Heath declared.

"At a time like this? Don't you know Brax has been hauled off by the cops?" Liam said, knowing that of course Heath did but struggling to understand how unaffected he was.

"Yeah, but they don't have any evidence, Brax didn't do it. He'll be outta there pretty quick." Heath shrugged and then walked off, leaving Liam to dip into his own funds to replenish the till.

xxx

As it turned out Heath had been right not to worry. Brax had been out of the cop shop in less than an hour, and he seemed pretty unfazed by it, so Liam rolled with that, not bothering to mention it because Brax hadn't.

"I was thinking about your situation," Liam said to Brax, he'd come up with an idea to attract some more people to the restaurant.

"Oh yeah, what situation is that?" Brax asked, clearly amused.

"The restaurant situation," Liam clarified, regretting his poor choice of words. Brax's dealings with the cops was none of Liam's business and as if he'd get involved in the whole Charlie affair. "What about some live music? I've got a mate that could play a show, mate's rates of course..." Brax considered, and apparently found no reason for them not to give it a go.

"Yeah alright, it's worth a crack. But it's up to you to set it all up."

"Ok, cool. I won't let ya down Brax," Liam said, realising that the prospect of being around music again was exciting. Not that he wanted to play a show, he was completely out of practice, but being on the scene again would be good.

"You better not," Brax said before walking off. Right, Liam had some phone calls to make, he wanted this gig to run smoothly. He was doing this for Brax, but in part he was doing it for himself too. He needed to know that he was still capable of this kind of thing.

xxx

Between pouring drinks Liam had spent the day on the phone getting ready for the gig on Saturday night. He'd organised the band and the promo stuff, it hadn't been too hard, he still had a lot of contacts that were willing to work with him despite his prior...issues. Heath hadn't been in to Angelo's all day, which was unusual for him, and Liam was happy to see him after his shift.

"What a day," Liam said to Heath, "life's never dull with the Braxton's around is it?"

"Not for you with this one around I hope," Heath said suggestively, sliding his hand behind Liam's head and pulling him in for a kiss. Heath's enthusiastic greeting proved Liam's point; being kissed like this was anything but dull. Liam returned the kiss eagerly, Heath's sudden intensity was unexpected and thrilling; a total turn-on. Liam slid his hand down onto Heath's arse, and was just beginning to think they should take this somewhere more private when Heath flinched and pulled away.

"Careful," he said, "I told you I was getting a new tatt." So Heath had gone ahead and done it. Nope, never a dull moment at all.

"On your arse...what is it?"

"Well," Heath said coyly, "it's you."

"What do ya mean it's me?" Liam asked faintly, he had a bad feeling about this.

"It's your face." No. Fucking. Way. Liam would die if Heath had ruined his gorgeous arse with such a ridiculous tattoo.

"You did fucking not..." Liam said, willing his words to be true.

"Yeah I did," Heath said enthusiastically, "romantic isn't it?" And then Heath pulled the waist band of his shorts down just enough so Liam could see the medical tape that held the dressing in place. Holy fuck, he'd really done it, Liam thought he might be sick.

"What's wrong?" Heath asked, he'd never seen Murphy quite so pale before.

"I think I need to sit down," Liam said, and he did. "Why?" Liam asked hopelessly, but there was nothing Heath could say that would make this better.

"Don't ya like it? I thought you would. I tried to ask you about it but you wouldn't listen, so I just went ahead and did it." Liam could see it now, the badly drawn face, not that any of Heath's other tatts were bad, but faces were tricky. He pictured the squinty eyes and the big teeth and wondered if he'd ever be able to look at Heath the same way again. "You'll like it when you see it," Heath insisted, but Liam doubted that very much.

"How long until the dressing comes off?" Liam asked, but never would be too soon.

"It should be fine by tomorrow," Heath said, looking quite pleased with himself.


	23. Chapter 23

To say that Liam was a little stressed was an understatement. Business at Angelo's wasn't great, which was worrying in itself, so he'd organised this gig to help, but now he was worried about that. And yesterday the cops had hauled Brax in for questioning about the fire. Heath wasn't stressed, he knew the fire had nothing to do with them and he'd spent enough time around cops that it didn't bother him the way it did Liam. Add to all that, that Heath had gotten this ridiculous tattoo, and yeah, life was a kinda stressful at the moment. At a time like this Liam needed someone to talk to and Heath should be his first choice. But was Heath really the best person for it? He could be pretty insensitive and he was the cause of some of Liam's worry, maybe seeing him would make it worse. After all, Heath did have a way of riling him up at the best of times. In the end Liam came to the conclusion that there was no one he'd rather be with than Heath so he decided to give him the benefit of the doubt. And this way he'd be put out of his misery sooner rather than later. After all, if he wanted to keep seeing Heath, he'd have to face _it_ eventually...

xxx

The grim look on Murphy's face as he walked into Heath's bedroom was perfect. Sucked in, served him right.

"Hey, can you check this for me," Heath said, referring to the new tattoo on his arse. Liam really, really didn't want to but he was here now, he may as well get it over and done with. Heath pulled his shorts down enough to reveal the dressing, and then twisted round, making sure he could see Murphy's face. Liam peeled the tape off, freaking out the entire time, but the further he peeled the tape back the more bare skin he saw. As Heath watched he saw the dread on Murphy's face transform into confusion and then, yep, there it was, the realisation.

"You lousy prick!" Murphy exclaimed, ripping the rest of the tape off viciously and shoving Heath away from him, "I barely slept last night."

"You shoulda seen your face," Heath laughed as he hitched his shorts up and turned to face his cranky rockstar. Murphy looked at him with delightful anger, he'd really fallen for it. "Did you really think I'd tattoo your face on my arse?"

"I can't believe you did that to me!" Liam said with outrage, but the overwhelming feeling coursing through him was relief. Thank God Heath hadn't ruined himself.

"Maybe next time you'll think twice before you take Brax's side..." Heath gloated.

"You did this to teach me a lesson? You're unbelievable..."

"I think irresistible is the word you're looking for," Heath said, as he pressed himself against Liam. And maddeningly Liam had to admit he was right. It was impossible to stay mad at Heath. Yes he'd been horrible, but damn, he'd just done it in such an adorable way. And the way he was looking at Liam now, all 'I know I was naughty but I also know you adore me too much to care', well it was just too cute. But Liam knew better than to voice any of that, Heath would probably punch him if he dared call him cute.

"So did you really get a new tatt or was it all bullshit?" Liam asked as he slid his hands around Heath's waist.

"I got one."

"Show me."

"Alright," Heath said with a grin, "but you'll have to find it first." That sounded like a challenge Liam was definitely up for. Heath's lack of 'grown-up' clothing worked in Liam's favour, all he had to do was pull Heath's loose singlet off to reveal his tanned torso. Liam took his time tracing the familiar designs on Heath's arms and chest, and ok maybe he didn't have to taste the tatts to know they were the same, but you never know. Heath's stomach was bare and his shorts rode a little higher on his hips than usual, maybe that was a clue. But then, that was what Heath wanted. So Liam resolved to drag this out, take his time, make Heath wait... It was difficult, but Liam could do this, he could _win_. So before he investigated that enticing possibility Liam circled Heath, checking his back and finding no new ink there, felt the fire build, knowing he'd have to investigate this mystery... _lower_.

"I know it's not on your arse..." Liam said mischievously, trailing his hand over Heath's butt as he circled around to stand in front of the semi-naked River Boy once more.

"No, it's not..." Heath said huskily, anticipating Murphy's worshipping search techniques applied below his waistline. He needed to piss Murphy off more often if this was the result.

"That doesn't leave many options then does it?" Murphy purred, his mouth only inches from Heath's. Heath thought Murphy meant to kiss him and he leaned in to meet those warm lips but Murphy pulled away with a pleased look, leaving Heath in a daze. He was captivated and a slight shake of his head was all Heath could manage in reply. Murphy ran his hands down Heath's chest, and Heath's skin tingled with the touch. His desire was becoming overwhelming, and then Murphy dropped to his knees. The sight alone nearly brought him undone. Ever so slowly Liam reached out and slipped his fingers under the waistband of Heath's shorts, and he began to pull them down, inch by agonizingly slow inch.

"Ahh, you're nearly there..." Heath ground out, no longer sure what the goal was, only knowing that he needed Murphy to move faster.

"Nearly where?" Murphy asked, looking up at Heath as though he had no idea what Heath was talking about. Looking down at those blue eyes, and seeing that mouth, so close to... Heath lost the capacity to form a sentence.

"Please..." was all he could manage to say.

"Sorry, I didn't quite catch that?" Murphy said, standing once more. No, no, no, that wasn't right, he was too far away now. Heath moved forward, pressing himself against Murphy, needing the contact and Murphy looked at him with a smile pulling at the corner of his mouth and a certain glint in his eye. Wait a minute, Heath knew that look... Murphy was teasing him as payback. Well, Heath wasn't gonna give him the satisfaction.

"The tattoo, you were almost there, you loser..." Crap, too far, judging by the look on Murphy's face and the way he was pulling away. Heath really needed to learn when to keep his mouth shut. Last time he'd called Murphy a loser he'd sooked off up the coast. "Liam, wait. Look, here it is," Heath said quickly, stopping Murphy in his tracks. Heath pushed his waistband down just enough to reveal the fresh ink. With the sound of his own name echoing in his head, Liam came back to study Heath's new tattoo. On the soft skin just below Heath's right hip bone were words, Latin words. They were slightly raised and the skin around them was a little red but they were plenty clear enough to read.

"In vino veritas..." Liam whispered, as he traced his finger lightly beneath them.

"See? I knew you'd like it when you saw it," Heath grinned.

"I..." Liam was speechless. Heath had been right, it was romantic. He hadn't thought Heath had it in him to be this thoughtful. It was...well, it was perfect and words escaped him.

Heath had been hopeful at first but Murphy's extended silence began to worry him. Had he fucked this up? Was it too corny? He liked it because it was a secret just the two of them could share.

"Our first kiss, remember? A bottle of wine and...and how I really felt about you..." The uncertainty in Heath's voice snapped Liam's thoughts back into focus. He took Heath's face in his hands.

"I'll never forget it as long as I live." It was impossible to say who started what happened next, both of them probably, and it didn't matter anyway. What mattered was that they ended up naked on the bed together, completely absorbed in the moment. Liam pressed Heath into the mattress desperately, his hand sliding underneath Heath, making his intention clear. He wanted Heath, in every way, and it had never felt more right. His hand slid across the smooth skin, he felt Heath's hands pressing feverishly against his chest, their mouths locked together, it was perfect...except, now Heath was pushing him away...

"Not a fucking chance Murphy," Heath said with a breathy laugh, as he pushed Liam off himself. It was a horrible, wretched feeling, made worse by Heath's apparent amusement. "There's no way I'm letting you top." Heath's abrupt halting of their proceedings took Liam completely by surprise. He was so caught up in it all he hadn't stopped to think that Heath might not let him do this. And why did Heath find it so funny? It was amazing how quickly the heat of desire was being replaced with flames of anger...again.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Liam asked indignantly, offended by Heath's implication. Why shouldn't he top? He was just as much a man as Heath was... but Heath was still grinning at him, in a way that said he thought Liam was missing something totally clear. But for the life of him Liam couldn't see it...

"You are so the bitch in this relationship," Heath said, as though that fact should be blindingly obvious.

"I am not jerk!" Liam shot back, his anger and embarrassment reducing him to child-like taunts.

"Ha! There you go, that proves it," Heath said triumphantly. Whatever retort was on the tip of Liam's tongue died when his phone rang. He answered it so he wouldn't say something he'd regret. It was Jess.

"Yeah," Liam answered, harsher than he meant to. Heath watched as Murphy's face grew more solemn, the news on the other end didn't appear to be something he wanted to hear. "Dude, can't you figure something out? It's all organised, the promo and everything...c'mon, you can't do this to me...alright fine. Thanks for nothing." Murphy ended the call.

"What was all that about?" Heath asked, his teasing forgotten for the moment. He was the only one that was allowed to upset his Murphy. He'd bash the shit out of whoever was on the other end of that phone if he had to.

"Jess's cancelled. Who the fuck am I gonna find to play with such short notice and at that price?" Shit, this was a disaster. He'd gone and let Brax down after promising he wouldn't. Liam was ready to properly freak out, when a smile crept onto Heath's face. Yep, he shoulda known it would be too much to expect Heath to support him. "This is in no way funny," Liam stated.

"Well, it kinda is dumbass," Heath said, his smile widening. "I thought it was something bad. I was ready to belt the crap outta someone for you. But this is easy fixed. All we need is a muso..."

"I know..." Liam said with frustration, racking his brain for a last minute replacement.

"...I don't know where we could possibly find one," Heath finished with a pointed look. Why was Heath looking at him like that? They needed a musician, a musician like him...oh.

"What? Me? Na, no way. I couldn't do it. I'm way out of practice," Liam insisted but Heath just held that steady smile at him. "No."

"C'mon Murphy, it can't be that hard. Whatda ya need to practice for? You're a rocker aren't you? All ya gotta do is a bit of squawking and strum a few chords."

"There's a bit more to it than that," Liam said, offended that Heath thought that's all there was to his music.

"Whatever. It just sounds like an excuse to me. What are ya? Chicken shit?" It was blunt, but it was true. Liam had nothing.

"Maybe, so what?"

"So, I'm pretty sure I don't wanna date a chickenshit..." Liam was stunned. Did Heath just say he'd dump him if he didn't play this gig? "Geez Murphy, I was only joking," Heath said, taking in the shocked look on Murphy's face, maybe he should try to be a little more understanding about this. "Seriously though, you could do it if you wanted to," Heath said moving closer to Murphy, wanting him to know he was here for him.

"And what exactly are you basing that on?" Liam asked doubtfully, trying not to let the sight of naked-Heath sitting on the bed, with a sheet pooled around his waist and belief in his eyes distract him. He kinda did wanna play this gig but his confidence was shot to shit after his last attempt at cutting a record. But what other option did he have?

"I dunno," Heath shrugged, "just that I think you could do anything if you wanted to..." Liam gave him a wry look, hadn't he just failed at doing something he'd wanted to do? "Well except that," Heath grinned.


	24. Chapter 24

Liam was freaking out. Come to think of it, he seemed to be doing a lot of that lately. Now, the fact that he was freaking out was something that Heath hadn't failed to notice. The big give aways were the parts where he wouldn't talk to Heath, or even look at him. And Heath decided this was a situation he needed to do something about. Right, so Murphy needed to relax, take a chill pill, no wait, scratch that, chill pills weren't a good idea, not that Heath was considering actually offering him drugs, it was a figure of speech or whatever...anyway, all this was way off track. Man, thinking was overrated, just doing stuff was way better.

"C'mon Murph, take a break," Heath suggested. "Let's go to the beach."

"What? Now? Are you serious? I've got way too much stuff to do..." Murphy said, looking rather frazzled. His hair was all over the place as though he'd been running his hands through it all morning and he was surrounded by equipment which Heath had no clue as to what it did. Cords and speakers and pedals, it seemed like a fuck load of shit just to make a guitar work. Add to that the scrunched up bits of paper lying everywhere and Murphy really did look like a crazy person.

"What's all this crap?" Heath said, bending down and picking one of the discarded bits of paper up off the floor and attempting to unscrunch it. "Are you writing more songs or something?"

"God no," Murphy said, "now is so not the time for that." Heath finished flattening out the bit of paper and saw it was a list of songs, with some crossed out and arrows all amongst them. Murphy was back to mucking around with some piece of junk or other. Heath scooped up another ball of paper off the floor and found it was almost identical to the first one.

"Are these all like this?" he questioned, beginning to worry a little about Murphy's state of mind. He held the crinkled bit of paper up for Murphy to examine.

"Yeah, so?"

"So this is crazy. You're stressing this much over a set list? Who the fuck cares what order you sing them in? You've got CD's don't ya? Just roll with that order..."

"I can't do that-"

"Why not?"

"It's just not what you do..."

"Fucking hell, this isn't the Liam Murphy Spectacular! It's just a few songs in the corner of a small town bar..." Silence hung between them. Heath wondered if he'd done it again, he hadn't meant to upset Murphy but he needed to be told... Thankfully the silence was broken by Murphy's laughter, and thankfully it was good-humoured, not that maniacal, crazy-person laughter.

"You know what? You're right," Murphy conceded. "Let's go to the beach."

xxx

It was nice to be out in the sunshine on such a beautiful morning. Heath kicked off his thongs and pulled his singlet over his head, discarding it on the sand.

"You wanna go for a swim?"

"I can't swim, remember?" Murphy said, knocking his knuckles against Heath's skull. Heath scowled at him, did Murphy think he was a moron or something?

"I know, but it's not like I'd let you drown..." Heath said in offering. Teaching Murphy to swim wasn't entirely unselfish, he wouldn't mind seeing a shirtless Murphy mucking around in the surf...

"No, not today..." One day Liam would let Heath teach him but he was one-hundred and ten percent sure it would involve an argument and he didn't need the hassle today, they were here to chill out after all.

"Well what _are_ you gonna do? Sit there and watch me swim?"

"I wouldn't be opposed to it..." Liam said, making absolutely no effort to hide his shameless ogling of Heath. Heath rolled his eyes and attempted to brush it off but Liam didn't miss the smile playing at his yummy River Boys' lips. And now he wanted to kiss those lips. Liam pressed his hand to Heath's chest and leaned in, intending to do just that but Heath wouldn't have a bar of it.

"No, no..." Heath said firmly, taking a step back. "For once in your life you are going to act like a normal person at the beach." Wasn't this exactly what 'normal' people did at the beach? But Liam didn't get a chance to say anything before Heath declared, "we're gonna build a sandcastle."

"Huh?" Building a bloody sandcastle was the last thing Liam had had in mind.

"You heard me. Don't tell me you're even too retarded to build a sandcastle?"

"No, of course not," Liam huffed, immediately dropping to his knees in the warm, white sand and beginning to level a patch. In his determination to prove Heath wrong he missed the affectionate smile Heath bestowed upon him before he plonked down next to Liam to assist him with the construction.

xxx

"Hey Case, you alright?" Brax asked as he came to stand by Casey who was leaning on the railing outside the Surf Club gazing down at the beach. His little brother had a slightly disturbed air about him, though under the circumstances that was understandable.

"Yeah, I'm just waiting for Dex and Xave, their gonna help me...catch up with..." Casey trailed off, seemingly distracted. Brax followed his gaze and there on the beach were Heath and Liam _building a sandcastle_. Quite frankly, it was fucking bizarre.

"What the fuck are they doing..." and by that Brax meant, why? Why in God's name would two, presumably sober, grown men be building a sandcastle together at ten o'clock in the morning?

"It is pretty weird isn't it?" Casey said, "I mean how happy they are together, they hated each other so much...it's like they both had brain transplants or something..."

"I'm hearing ya..." Brax agreed, "though it is nice to have Heath so...occupied..."

"Yeah," Casey agreed, "keeps him outta trouble..." Brax didn't miss Casey's meaning. He reached out and gripped Casey's shoulder, looking him in the eye, as he gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"It's gonna be alright Case," Brax told him and then he wandered off, back into the real world.

xxx

"Well, I think it's pretty good considering we had nothing to use but our bare hands," Heath declared as he stood to admire their castle. Ok, so maybe it was a little wonky and Heath's side wasn't as arty as Murphy's but still, it seemed to work.

"Hmm," Liam mused, "it's missing something..."

"Like what?" Heath said, as he brushed his hands together to remove the sand from them, the castle looked pretty satisfactory to him.

"Like...flare or something. Maybe we can decorate it with some shells..."

"Race ya to find the best ones," Heath said as he took off in search of said shells. Liam rose to the challenge, hurriedly combing the beach for some super pretty ones. He wanted ones with cool colours and that weren't broken but Heath didn't appear to be so fussy. By the time Liam came back to the castle, Heath was already pushing his loot into the walls of the tower Liam had made.

"This is my room," Heath declared, as he took care not to crumble the tower as he decorated it, "it's the best one."

"We aren't gonna share?" Liam asked as he kneeled down to begin decorating the rest of the structure.

"No, get your own room."

"What if a cyclone comes and blows your room away?" Liam said and then he swung his hand at the castle destroying 'Heath's room'.

"Oi," Heath protested, looking rather distraught for a moment before his usual audacity returned. "I'm definitely not sharing with you now. I'm taking your room and you'll have to sleep outside..."

"What if the whole thing gets blown away?" Liam said and then he pushed Heath back, falling on top of him and crushing the castle beneath them. "Then what will we do?"

"We'll have to huddle for warmth I suppose..." Heath accepted, wrapping his arms around Liam and pulling him in for a kiss. When they broke apart, Liam had a moment of looking down at Heath and feeling the weight of this moment. Liam never imagined he'd be here like this with the River Boy, but he was oh so glad he was. Heath looked back at him, and there was no one in the world but them, this, right here, was everything.

"What?" Heath said, his eyes alight with the joy of life…and maybe just a hint of trepidation.

"Nothing," Liam said with a smile, knowing words would ruin the moment, "just kiss me again." And Heath did. A fleeting thought of the long shower they would need take after this sandy encounter flashed through Liam's mind before he melted into the kiss completely, life was good.

xxx

Dexter Walker, ultra-nerd, and Xavier Austin, reformed bad boy and now all round nice guy, were on their way to meet Casey Braxton. Casey Braxton who had apparently decided he was too cool for school and had now suffered a change of heart. They slowed their pace a little when they noticed that Casey wasn't alone.

"Let's wait till he's gone," Xavier said, referring to the eldest Braxton brother.

"Ok," Dex agreed with obvious relief, "he is kinda scary."

"Yeah..." Xavier agreed, because it was the expected response.

"Do you really think they're drug dealers?" Dex asked, kind of excited by the potential dangerousness of the Braxton's.

"Maybe," Xavier shrugged. It wasn't a lie, it just wasn't the whole truth either. He knew the Braxton's were dealers, Heath had hooked Xavier up when he'd first come to town and was making a little cash by selling pot to his classmates. Xavier was happy to steer clear of the elder Braxton's, they were seriously hard core, and he didn't need their kinda trouble anymore. They watched Casey's brother leave and headed over to where Casey stood. 'Heys' were exchanged all round and that's when Xavier and Dexter _saw them_ , eyes nearly bugging from their heads.

"Is that-" Dexter began but he was cut off mid-question.

"Yes," Casey sighed.

"And is that-" Xavier attempted to ask but was cut off as well.

"Yes," Casey sighed again.

"And are they-" Dex asked, just to be sure, because this was the weirdest thing that had happened since New Line announced Peter Jackson would _not_ be directing The Hobbit.

"Yes. It's my _brother_ Heath and his _boyfriend_ Liam Murphy rolling around in the sand together..." Casey left the 'snogging each others brains out' part unspoken.

"I didn't know your brother was a fag," Xavier said offhandedly, now that he'd recovered from the initial shock.

"He's not," Casey said, still struggling a little to come to terms with the fact that his man whore of a brother was in a relationship _with a dude_.

"But..." Xavier protested, raising his arm to point towards the enthusiastic couple.

"Stop that," Casey said urgently, pushing Xavier's arm down, he didn't need any more attention drawn to the situation. "It's not like he wants every bloke he sees..."

"Yeah but he _is_ snogging a bloke right now..."

"I'm aware of that," Casey said flatly, "now can we go?"

"I think we better," Dex chimed in, looking rather troubled, "I knew there was a reason I didn't watch Brokeback Mountain..."


	25. Chapter 25

Liam had just finished his set at Angelo's. He felt good, really good actually. It was a total thrill to be back performing and the best part was that he hadn't fucked it up, proving to himself that there was something of the capable musician left in him. But the buzz dimmed a little when he saw Heath. Heath stood to back of the room, an unreadable expression on his face. Hadn't he liked the show? Liam made his way towards him, stopping a few times to chat with people who had enjoyed the show.

"So what'd ya think?" Liam asked, more than a little apprehensively, once he'd managed to cross the room. He put a lot into his music and he hoped that Heath would like it.

"I hated it." Heath stated, Liam waited for more but that seemed to be all Heath had to say on the subject.

"Well don't sugar-coat it," Liam muttered, wondering why he'd thought Heath's reaction would be any different, "why don't you tell me what you really think?" Just because this was important to Liam, it didn't mean Heath was sensitive enough to see that. Music was like a window to his soul and he was more than a little put out that Heath could dismiss it so easily, not to mention, he was hurt. No, you know what? Fuck it, he was gonna call Heath on this. He put up with a lot of shit from him and just because this was yet another example of 'Heath just being Heath' it didn't mean he should be allowed to get away with stomping on other people's feelings.

"Wanna get out of here?" Heath said suggestively, apparently he'd already moved past the part where he'd completely dismissed the feelings of someone he supposedly cared about.

"No, I don't," Liam said, making no effort to mask his hostility. He was angry now. It wasn't even that Heath didn't like his music it was the fact that he didn't give a shit at all. If it wasn't to Heath's taste, Liam could understand that, but Heath hadn't even really considered it.

"What's your problem?" Heath shot back defensively.

"A bigger one than I thought if you can't figure it out," Liam replied heatedly, before he turned and walked away. He marched down the stairs, heading outside, thinking it wisest to be alone. He didn't wanna bite some poor admirers head off if they came to speak to him about the gig because scaring the patrons off would defeat the purpose of this exercise entirely.

Well shit, that went downhill pretty fucking quick. Heath ran back over what he'd said and it didn't take him long to find the offending words. 'I hated it' probably, ok definitely, wasn't the smartest thing to say.

"Oi Murphy! Wait up," Heath said as he pushed through the crowd of people that were still milling around after the gig. But Murphy didn't stop, in fact he seemed determined to ignore Heath and that was something Heath could not stand. He followed Murphy down the stairs and out the door. "I said wait," Heath stated as he caught up to Murphy just outside the Surf Club. He grabbed Murphy's arm, spinning him round so he had to look at him. "I didn't mean it," Heath said, as though those words excused all the horrible things he said, but Liam wasn't gonna let him get away with it this time.

"Didn't mean what?" Liam asked, this should be good.

"God I love that fire," Heath said reverently, as he looked into Liam's eyes.

"You're unbelievable," Liam said with exasperation, "you did this just to make me angry..."

"Na," Heath said, "it's a good idea though, wish I'd thought of it..."

"So you do hate my music?" Liam was growing increasingly frustrated, but there was something about the way that Heath was looking at him now that didn't allow him to turn away again.

"No, I just hated the show. You were so good and when I looked around at everyone else I could see they thought so too..." That's what this was about?

"You're jealous?" Liam said incredulously, at times he wondered if he'd ever figure out the way Heath's mind worked.

"You're the only person who was there that could blame me," Heath said as he closed the gap between them, "you weren't watching the show."

"You know what'd solve a lot of our problems?" Liam said, as he leaned in slowly.

"What's that?"

"If you just said what you bloody mean." Heath gave him a devilish grin.

"And where would the fun in that be?" Heath teased before planting a daring kiss on Liam's lips.

xxx

Things had been a little weird between Heath and Casey lately and there were no medals for guessing why. But this, this should be perfect to bridge the gap. Some stuff had popped up online about last night's gig and it got Heath to thinking...

"Hey Casey, get your butt over here," Heath called to his sullen little brother. Heath was sitting at the table, surfing the net, on what may or may not have been a legally acquired laptop.

"Why?" Casey said, but Heath was pleased to see that he was doing as he'd been asked.

"Check this out," Heath said as he pulled the chair next to himself out for Casey to take a seat. Casey sat in the offered seat and they leaned over the computer together.

"Are you googling Liam?" Casey asked.

"Yeah," Heath admitted readily, encouraged by the smile Casey was failing to hide. "Look at this shit." Heath scrolled through the pictures on Google images, mischievously delighted by the ridiculousness and randomness of many of the photos.

"Oh my God, click on that one," Casey said pointing to a particularly stupid one. In the photo Murphy was wearing a white suit with a black shirt and tie but that wasn't the ridiculous part. The ridiculous part was the way the idiot's hair was styled sticking straight up from his head.

"Do ya reckon he styled it himself?" Heath laughed.

"I hope not..." Casey laughed in reply.

"Look at the wanker in that one," Heath said pointing to a picture of Murphy in a typical 'scratch your nits' pose. "Who does he think he is?"

"Wait, wait, look at this one," Casey said, indicating to one of the rock star lying fully clothed and dripping wet in a bathtub. "What do you think goes through celebrity's heads when they pose for photos like that?"

"'Fuck I look hot in this bathtub' I 'spose..." Heath shrugged, making Casey laugh again.

Liam walked into the Braxton's house without bothering to knock. Surely putting up with Heath had earned him the right to do so. Upon entering the house he was met by the sight of Heath and Casey hunched over a computer in fits of laughter, it was good to see them getting along.

"Whatchya's up to?" Liam enquired, interested to know what could possibly be so funny.

"Nothing," Heath said, slamming the laptop closed and turning to face Liam. Well, nothing was more suspicious than nothing, especially when one took into consideration the matching expressions on Heath and Casey's faces. The looks they wore said they were up to no good and were far too pleased about it.

"Yeah right," Liam said, overcome by the urge to know exactly what the evil brothers had been up to.

"What happened to your dog?" Heath asked, almost managing not smile, as Liam leaned over him to open the laptop. What dog? Was this a trick question? But when Liam saw what was on the screen he understood. Amongst the many mortifying pictures on the image search he saw one of himself with a Cocker Spaniel.

" _Really?_ Don't you two have anything better to do than google me?"

"Na," Casey said, "I can't think of anything, this is funny as..."

"Well I'm glad you think so..." Liam returned, reaching out and scruffing Casey's hair, partly because he was glad the brothers were comfortable enough to do this and partly just to annoy him.

"Did you lose your razor that month?" Heath asked sweetly, pointing to a picture in which Liam was sporting a rather full-on beard.

"No," Liam said, determined not to give Heath the reaction he was looking for, "I just thought that beard made me look fucking cool."

"You thought wrong..."

"Righto," Liam said, "I'll bet you've made some tragic style choices too." Liam made a mental note to find some Braxton photo albums when possible...

"I doubt it," Heath said, "but even if I had I wouldn't splash it all over the internet."

"It's not like I put these pictures on there."

"Sure you didn't," Heath stirred, "you love people looking at these hot pics of you."

"So they're hot now?" Liam challenged. Casey was smart enough to see where this would lead and beat a hasty retreat.

"Well, this black and white one's pretty smokin'..." Heath pointed out.

"Oh yeah..." Liam said, his tone inviting Heath to continue the thought, but their conversation was halted there by a knock at the door. Casey answered it. Heath looked past Liam to see _Cunt_ stable Rat Face and Floozy Cop, standing there looking all smug and full of themselves.

"Officers..." was all Casey had a chance to say before Heath was at the door.

"What'd you want?"

"We have a warrant to search the premises," Rat Face said as though that made her God. Heath had no idea what they could be searching for.

"What for?" he said, rather than the 'fuck off' he wanted to say.

"New evidence has come to light in the arson case and we have reason to believe your family was involved."

"That's crap and you know it. Brax has already been questioned and I wasn't even in town when it happened. Tell 'em Murph," Heath said, stepping aside to let Liam speak.

"It's true," Liam said, "we were up the coast together when it happened."

"There see? Now get lost."

"We can't do that Mr. Braxton, we've still got to carry out this warrant." She held the document out to Heath who eyed it suspiciously.

"What's going on here?" Came Brax's voice from behind the cops. Sweet, maybe together they could get these cops to clear off.

"We're trying to carry out this search warrant but your brother isn't co-operating," Ratty appealed to Brax. As if Brax was gonna side with a cop over his own brother.

"What's it for?" Brax asked. The cops ran through the 'new evidence' spiel again.

"Let 'em in Heath," Brax instructed, "we've got nothing to hide."

"I know that," Heath said, "but they can't just rock up here like they own the joint..."

"They've got a warrant," Brax said, his words accompanied by a look that told Heath not to argue anymore.

"Fine," Heath conceded, stepping aside and letting the bitches in. They waited around while the pigs scabbed through all their stuff, and when the slags were done, after finding nothing mind you, they declared that they would need to haul Casey in for questioning.

"You've gotta be fucking kidding," Heath said, "Casey had nothing to do with this."

"Maybe, but that's something we'll need to ascertain at the station," that ice cold bitch Brax was fucking said.

"He's a minor," Brax pointed out, "you can't question him without a guardian present."

"That's true," Ratty piped up, "but you're a suspect so you can't be his guardian in this matter."

"But I can," Heath said, there was no way he was letting Casey go into this alone. It was complete fucking bullshit anyway, Casey wouldn't do anything like this, Brax had taught him better than that.

"Fine," Ratty nodded, "let's go."

"It'll be alright Case," Brax said, "listen to Heath, he'll look after you, he knows what he's doing." Casey looked shell shocked and just nodded at Brax and headed for the door. Muthafucking bitches, they shouldn't be allowed to do this to an innocent kid, Casey wasn't supposed to have to deal with cops, Heath and Brax had worked so hard to make sure he wouldn't have to.

"Tell 'em nothing," Brax said quietly, clapping Heath on the shoulder before Heath followed Casey outside. And today was just another example of how fucking cops have a way of ruining everything.


	26. Chapter 26

Oh boy, what a day. It had taken hours to get it through those cops thick skulls that Casey was innocent. Heath walked into his room and flicked the light on.  
"Man that's creepy!" Shit, he shouldn't have said that, but Murphy _was right there asleep on his bed. The rock star stirred and opened his eyes, a sleepy smile settling on his lips when he saw Heath. Phew, he hadn't heard._  
"Leah kick you out?" Heath asked.  
"No, I fell asleep waiting for you...how'd it go?"  
"Like it usually does with cops, answering the same questions fifty times until they finally believe exactly what you told them in the first place." Heath sat on the edge of the bed, glad to be able to let his guard down now the police interrogation was over.  
"So Casey's alright?" Murphy asked from behind him and Heath felt Murphy's fingers trailing down his back, it was a comfort to have him here.  
"Yeah, he's been cleared," Heath sighed with relief. He turned to look at the man on his bed, his eyes meeting Murphy's bright blue ones and just for a moment it seemed unbelievable that he could be here and looking at Heath so...something, and Heath was suddenly so glad that he was. It was nice to have someone to come home to.  
"Come here," Murphy said, inviting Heath to lay down with him. Heath stood up and flicked the light off and climbed onto the bed, settling down in front of Murphy. He felt Murphy's arm slide around him and then he felt warm breath on his neck and his skin tingled where Murphy's beard brushed his shoulder.  
"You were hot today you know..." Murphy pressed a kiss to Heath's neck, "...the way you mouthed off at those cops and then stepped up and took control." Now Murphy's hand was under his singlet, sliding up his stomach.  
"A sucker for a bad boy huh?" Heath said as he felt another kiss.  
"Yes, the bad boy thing totally does it for me..." Heath liked where this was heading. He rolled onto his back and in the soft light provided by the street lights he took a moment to take in the hungry look on Murphy's face. "The control thing does too..." Holy fuck, Heath didn't need to hear any more. He pulled Murphy down, crushing their mouths together. Heath seized control of the kiss completely, giving Liam exactly what he wanted and what followed left no room for Heath to consider that control isn't always about force.

_xxx_

_It was already light when Liam woke. It was Monday and his turn to take the early delivery at work. Holy shit! He was late! Liam flew out of bed and threw on yesterday's clothes. He hadn't meant to stay all night. He tried not to disturb Heath but failed in his haste._  
"I'm late for work," he told Heath, who was grumbling about being woken for no good reason. Liam tried not to look at him too closely, tried not to think about last night too much, so he'd actually be able to walk out the door.  
"Don't I get a kiss goodbye?" Heath asked, just to make Liam even later for work but really, who could refuse that, when Heath looked all sleep-tousled and adorable. Liam stopped by the door and came back. Leaning over Heath with one knee on the bed and his hands pressed onto the mattress on either side of him. He leaned down and kissed Heath, like he'd never get to kiss him again.  
"Now I gotta go," Liam said pulling away, satisfied that he'd snogged Heath senseless, and that he would have no more trouble from him as he left.  
"You better never forget to do that again..." Heath said, watching Liam dazedly as he left. 

_xxx_

_"They've got nothing Case. Keep it together and they can't do shit." That was Brax's statement to Casey when Heath entered the room. Wait a minute..._

_"Huh, you did do it..." Heath said proudly and they both turned to face him. Brax's face fell but Casey looked ready for a fight._

_"So what?" Casey said angrily._

_"So I'm proud of ya mate," Heath said, patting Casey on the back, "it took guts _and_ you got away with it."_

_"Really Heath?" Casey said scathingly, "this isn't something you should be happy about, I fucked up-" Heath saw a flash of blue between the curtains and clapped his hand over Casey's mouth. Seconds later a knock at the door drew their attention. Heath grabbed Casey's arm and motioned for him to stay silent. He pushed Casey into the kitchen, out of sight of the door, as Brax answered it._

_"Is Casey home?" came Ratface's voice._

_"No," Brax lied effortlessly._

_"Do you know where we can find him?"_

_"Na, sorry."_

_"This is serious Mr. Braxton, new evidence has come to light and we are going to charge Casey."_

_"Oh yeah, what evidence would that be?" Brax asked skeptically._

_"We have CCTV footage placing Casey at the scene of the crime, we'll give you until five o'clock this afternoon to get him to the station." Fuck, maybe Heath shouldn't have been so quick to congratulate Casey. His eyes met Casey's, his little brother's fear evident and Heath knew there was no way he could let them lock Casey up._

_"Understood," was all Brax said before Heath heard the door click shut. They waited until they heard the cop car leave before any of them spoke._

_"Pack a bag Case, I know a place we can hide out," Heath told his brother. Casey was not the type to survive in prison, they need to get outta here, but Casey just stood there. "Now Casey!" Heath's raised voice shocked Casey into action and he started for his bedroom._

_"You can't be serious," Brax said, "he can't run for the rest of his life."_

_"At least he'll have a life. How long do you think he'll last inside?"_

_"It's outta the question Heath. He has to hand himself in. If he cooperates there's a chance they'll be lenient, it is his first offence..."_

_"It's a chance I'm not willing to take. Anyway, why do you get to decide? He's my little brother too and I say he's better off getting away from here." Heath and Brax glared at each other, both sure they were right and both unshakably stubborn when Casey's welfare was on the line. As caught up in their argument as they were, neither of them noticed that Casey had been listening to the whole exchange._

_"It's my life, don't I get a say in it?"_

_"No!" They both barked at him. Casey looked angry for a moment but then he took a deep breath and calmed himself, seemingly deciding that letting his temper get the better of him wouldn't help._

_"Look, I appreciate what you're both trying to do," he said and Heath didn't like the defeated tone his voice had taken on, "but I think Brax is right, I can't run forever, I have to face this."_

_"Casey please, you don't know what it's like in there..." Of the three of them Heath was the only one that had done time, and it was something he never wanted Casey to go through._

_"I know it won't be easy, but it's the right thing to do..." Why couldn't Casey have thought about the right thing to do _before_ he set a building on fire? Heath wanted to argue further but it appeared that Casey had made up his mind. It seemed so pointless that Casey was going to end up in prison for getting involved in a fight that didn't even concern him._

_"What'd you even do it for Case?" Heath asked, struggling to make sense of all this._

_"I wanted to help..." Casey said quietly, dropping his gaze to the floor._

_"Help who? You ending up in juvie doesn't help anyone..."_

_"You!...and Brax, I didn't want either of you to end up in jail...or worse." Oh God. Casey's done this for them. He would end up in prison because of them. Talk about a kick in the guts._

_xxx_

_That goodbye kiss had been playing on Liam's mind all day. And the look on Heath's face as he'd walked out the door. He headed over to Heath's place after work, hoping that maybe they could pick up where they'd left off. His reception though wasn't quite what he expected when he walked in the door. Maybe the fact that Heath hadn't been in to Angelo's today should've tipped him off._  
"Where the hell have you been?!" Heath barked at him, knowing full well that Liam had been at work all day, and implying there was something Liam could've done to avoid that. Well Liam supposed he could have, but he kinda needed to be there if he wanted to get paid.  
"Work."  
"Have you heard about Casey?"  
"No, what about him?" Liam had a bad feeling about where this was heading.  
"The cops came 'round here carrying on about new evidence and the silly little bastard turned himself in. They're gonna charge him with arson, he'll do jail time over this." Christ, it had always been in the back of Liam's mind that Heath or Brax could end up in jail one day, but never Casey. Heath and Brax had worked so hard to make sure Casey had had the opportunity to stay on the straight and narrow, so that he wouldn't get tangled up in their world...  
"Why'd he do it?" The look on Heath's face was like Liam had just hit him, and Liam was sorry he'd asked. He didn't wanna cause Heath anymore grief over this.  
"He...he did it for us..." Heath said as though he was having trouble comprehending it. "He thought Jake was gonna come after us so he got in first..." Fuck! Fuck, fuck, fuck! How had they let this happen? Heath shoulda kept a better eye on Casey, shoulda protected him. But then, Heath had been away when Casey had done this... He'd let Casey down and there was only one reason he hadn't been here... Heath didn't like the way Murphy was looking at him, he didn't deserve to be comforted over this. He'd screwed up and, and...  
"I shoulda been here!" Heath ranted at Liam, "not mucking around up the coast with you!"  
"Heath," Liam attempted to soothe him, "you couldn't have known." Liam reached for Heath, intending to pull Heath into his arms and comfort him, but Heath batted him away.  
"It doesn't matter! He's my little brother," Heath said, his voice was quieter now, "he can't go to jail." The look on Heath's face was heartbreaking, it was a pleading look, as though Liam could do something to prevent this and he wished he could, but there was nothing he could do. Liam tried again to hold Heath, and for a moment he thought Heath was going to let him, but then he tensed and pushed Liam away. "No! It's your fault I wasn't here!"  
"C'mon Heath, that's not fair," Liam said, hoping to calm Heath down, he had a horrible sense that Heath was slipping away and that scared him. "Brax was here, he didn't stop him."  
"So if Brax couldn't do it, I wouldn't have had a chance?"  
"That's not what I meant. I just mean there was nothing anyone could do. Look, I'm not going to fight you on this. I'll come back when you've calmed down." Liam didn't want to risk making Heath angrier, this wasn't like other fights they'd had and Liam was worried that he might say something to push Heath away for good if he didn't leave now.  
"Don't bother coming back!" Heath called to him as Liam walked out the door. Heath's words cut deep, but Liam just had to take the chance that this was one of those times that Heath didn't mean what he said. 


	27. Chapter 27

In a few short days Casey's trial would begin. Brax was doing everything he could to make sure it went Casey's way. And Heath? Well he was next to useless.

"Do you think maybe Liam could do a character reference for Casey? He was one of his teachers wasn't he? It might help in court..." Brax asked Heath because this was something his hothead brother might actually be able to handle. Heath had lost it all together since Casey's arrest.

"I doubt it," Heath said moodily, "he's a fucking known drug addict..."

"Fine, forget I-"

"...a fucking loser drug addict that lost his job because he went to class high!"

"Fuck, I get it! You don't wanna ask him."

"No I fucking don't..." Heath reiterated, sinking back down on the lounge to continue sulking.

"Well who else can we ask?"

"I don't know," Heath pouted.

"Jesus Christ Heath!" Brax snapped, "I can't deal with your shit right now! Would it be too much too ask you for a little help? Your fucking boyfriend troubles are the least of my worries..."

"Fuck you!" Heath shot back. He hated that Brax made this sound so trivial, because it wasn't. Heath was a complete mess right now. He missed Murphy like crazy, he wanted him back, needed him back. How could he be expected to deal with losing two people he loved at once? But as much as he wanted Murphy back, he couldn't bring himself to try to fix this. Because...well, the thing was...what if Murphy wouldn't forgive him this time?

xxx

Liam was lost. He didn't know what to do without Heath. It actually shocked him how much he'd come to need the River Boy. He felt like part of him was missing now that Heath wasn't there. And besides that, he knew how upset Heath was about Casey and he wanted so much to be there for him but he also knew he was the last person Heath wanted to see. Not so long ago that wouldn't have been at all out of the ordinary, but now...damn. Liam sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He had no idea how to fix this and that scared him. How did he apologise when he hadn't done anything wrong?

"Hey mate," came Romeo's voice through Liam's contemplations.

"Hey," Liam replied.

"Mind if I sit down? You look like you could use some company."

"I think you're right," Liam said, gesturing for Romeo to take a seat beside him on the bench. It was a cool day, made colder by the breeze, and Liam wrapped his jacket a little tighter around himself.

"Wanna talk about it?"

"Where would I even begin?"

"At the beginning," Romeo said with half a smile that Liam found he couldn't return. 

"I'm guessing this has something to do with Heath," Romeo prompted, serious once more.

"Yeah," Liam admitted, "we mighta broke up."

"Why, what happened? You seemed so happy..."

"We were..." Liam said, a smile pulling at the corner of his mouth despite himself. It seemed so strange and yet it was so true, being with Heath Braxton had actually made him happy, a month ago he'd never have dreamed it was possible. But that last night he'd spent with Heath? Well it hurt now to think about how amazing it had been. "He blames me for what happened with Casey...you heard about that?"

"Yeah, but I don't see how it's your fault."

"Casey lit the fire while we were away. Heath feels like he should have been here to stop him. But he wasn't because he was with me."

"That doesn't seem fair," Romeo observed.

"That's what I said, but Heath doesn't see it that way. I don't know how to make this better. He blames me but I didn't do anything wrong..." They sat in silence for a while before Romeo spoke again.

"Maybe it's not meant to get better," Romeo suggested. "I mean if he's treating you like this, maybe you're better off without him." Did Romeo have a point? Liam's life would certainly be easier without Heath, but, but...no, his life wouldn't be better without Heath. He added far more than he took. Yes he could be infuriating, but Liam never felt more alive than when he was with Heath. Heath stirred something in his being that no one else ever had. Those cheeky grins, that vexing yet endearing Heath-logic and those tender looks reserved only for Liam. Did Liam want to live without all that?

"No," Liam finally said, "I admit he can be difficult sometimes, but I don't wanna loose him." His life would be empty without Heath, of that Liam was sure. Even now he could feel that emptiness threatening to engulf him.

"Maybe he just needs to cool off."

"I hope so." It was good to be able to talk about this, Liam felt much better being able to share this with Romeo. Romeo's suggestion had helped reinforce that Liam didn't want to give Heath up without a fight, he was worth more than that. So now the question was, how the hell did he fix this?


	28. Chapter 28

It was always up to Brax to fix his brothers problems, and right now this was by far the easiest one to deal with. Any idiot could see how crazy Heath and Liam were about each other, so they both just needed to man up and get the fuck over this.

"Liam, I need to talk to you!" Brax called as he bashed on Liam's front door. Liam appeared instantly, looking as though he was on his way out.

"Brax, I was just-"

"What's the deal with you and Heath?"

"The deal?"

"Yeah," Brax said with frustration, "why's he sitting at home looking like the world's just come to an end? I've got bigger things to worry about..." Heath really looked like that? Maybe there was hope yet.

"We kinda had a fight, he told me not to come back...I was giving him a chance to cool off..."

"That's not what he needs right now, so get the fuck over there and sort this out."

"Geez alright, I was heading there anyway."

"Good. I'll drop you off on my way to Angelo's." The sooner this was sorted the better. Then they could focus on the real problem and not a pair of sissies having a sook over nothing.

Liam went along with Brax, figuring it was pointless to argue with the eldest Braxton when he was on a mission.

"How are things with Casey?" Liam asked once they were on the road.

"Not great. He's gonna go down for this so it's just damage control now. We're trying to make his actions look as uncharacteristic as possible so they'll sentence him lightly."

"I wish there was something I could do to help."

"There is. Patch things up with Heath so I don't have to worry about him too." Liam feared that was easier said than done.

"I'll try." That was the best he could offer, Heath had been so angry the last time Liam had seen him. Brax pulled up in the street outside the house, leaving the engine running. Liam unfastened his seatbelt, opened the door and got out.

"Hey Liam," Brax called through the open window, so Liam turned back to face him, feeling slightly uneasy when he saw the smirk on Brax's face. "By the way, he's been in a filthy mood for days, so have fun with that."

"Thanks," Liam deadpanned, and then Brax drove off. Liam's earlier elation dimmed dramatically as the reality of facing Heath was before him, but he was resolved to do this, he may as well get yelled at now as at any other time. Even knocking on the door caused him a dilemma. Did he do it or not? Previously he wouldn't have, but with the way things were now could he just walk in? But if he did knock was that like admitting things were worse than he hoped they were? Bloody hell, it was just a door, he grabbed the handle and let himself in.

xxx

He'd gone and done it now. Messed up the best thing he'd ever had going for him. Because that's what this thing with Murphy was, the best, Heath could see that now. But in a moment of frustration at his inability to prevent Casey's downfall he'd chased Murphy away, and this time he hadn't come back. At the time it had been so much easier to blame someone else so that he didn't have to feel this horrible guilt. Heath sighed, resigned to the fact that Murphy was gone, he supposed it had been only a matter of time, he'd never been very good at this relationship thing. You could only treat someone like a piece of shit for so long before they cut you loose, but despite that Heath hadn't thought that Murphy ever really would walk away. They'd both made a fundamental change in their lives by committing to this relationship and splitting up didn't seem like something that should ever have happened, except it had.

And on top of losing Murphy he'd gone and pissed Brax off too. Deep down Heath knew it wasn't either of their faults that Casey was gonna end up in jail, but well fuck, he'd just had to let his frustration out somehow. He heard the rumble of The General's engine outside, maybe he could say sorry or some shit to Brax and have a go at fixing this. He didn't wanna be separated from both his brothers, besides, Brax had to forgive him right? Because they were family, and Brax at least, didn't have a choice, he was stuck with Heath no matter what. Murphy on the other hand…well Heath didn't wanna think about that now, he couldn't handle another lost cause today. Heath heard the door open and marched into the lounge room, determined to apologise to Brax before he had a chance to change his mind or over think this and fuck it up too much.

"Look Brax, I-" Heath began but he stopped short, because the man who'd stepped inside wasn't Brax, it was that idiot Murphy. The one who had the ability to affect him so deeply, to make him so glad and so bloody mad at the same time. The one he didn't wanna live without. The one who'd gone and left him when he'd needed him. That Murphy. But all that was somewhere in Heath's subconscious. The only thing that mattered now was that he was also one who'd come back, and that had to count for something right? That stupid, amazing, annoying, gorgeous man stood in front of him and all Heath knew was that now his Murphy was back, he needed him to understand that he was never allowed to do this to Heath again. Because, you know, they obviously belonged together and all that crap.

xxx

For a moment as Liam considered the determined way Heath approached him, he thought that he might be about to cop a fist in the eye, but that didn't turn out to be the case.

"I can't believe you walked out," Heath said, throwing his arms around Liam and holding him tight. This wasn't at all what Liam had expected. Caught off guard, it took him a moment to answer.

"I didn't want to make you angrier," Liam explained as he returned Heath's embrace.

"I've told you before that's the best part," Heath said, his tone bordering on panic now, it worried Liam. But then, in a moment of clarity, Liam realised Heath was scared. He'd been scared that Liam wouldn't come back.

"Hey, c'mon," Liam said gently, pulling back so he could see Heath's face, "I'm not going anywhere."

"For real?" The unguarded look on Heath's face prompted a stirring realisation for Liam...

"For real." Looking at Heath in that moment Liam knew, beyond a doubt, that he was completely and utterly in love with Heath Braxton.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you. I shouldn't have said it was your fault." It was very unlike Heath to admit he was wrong, he really must've thought Liam was gone for good. Liam was sorry he'd left Heath alone when he'd needed him, he'd caused him more worry when he needn't have.

"And I'm so sorry I left you."

"So you should be, it was a horrible thing to do," Heath stated, much more like himself now that he was satisfied Liam was here to stay, "you shouldn't have left me here by myself. You're an idiot...I hate you." The words tumbled out of Heath's mouth and though Liam heard them, Heath's tone didn't match, and neither did the look in his warm brown eyes. And Liam understood what Heath was saying, as surely as he knew how he felt towards the man in his arms.

"I'm sorry jerk," Liam said affectionately, taking Heath's face in his hands, "and I hate you too." Then Liam leaned in and kissed Heath, making sure to show him just how deep that hatred burned.


End file.
